Bayern play their first knockout game of 2023 when they travel to Mainz on Wednesday evening in the DFB Cup round of 16. We’ve got some stats and facts as FCB look to reach the quarter-finals.
1. Last-16 hurdle passed in recent times
Bayern were last in the DFB Cup round of 16 in 2019/20 when a Thomas Müller goal helped them to a 4-3 win over Hoffenheim.
Having failed to get beyond the second round in the last two years, Bayern are back in the last 16 of the DFB Cup for the first time since 2019/20. They have gone on to progress from this stage the last 13 times they have been here since a 4-2 defeat to Alemannia Aachen. And in the last three campaigns where they’ve been in the round of 16, FCB have gone on to reach the final.
2. Mainz not a happy hunting ground of late
Although Bayern have won nine of their last 11 encounters with Mainz, they have in fact lost the last two visits to the MEWA Arena. Julian Nagelsmann’s side were already champions when they were beaten 3-1 there on Matchday 32 of last season, while the title celebrations were delayed by a week the previous campaign after a 2-1 defeat on Matchday 31.
3. Not the first cup encounter
This is the third time Bayern and Mainz have been paired together in the DFB Cup. The Bavarians progressed in the first two encounters, winning 3-0 in 1999/2000 and 3-2 (a.e.t.) in 2005/06. Both were at home, making this the first cup tie to be played between the two in Mainz.
4. Bayern’s cup scoring machine
FCB have scored five goals in each of the first two rounds, beating Viktoria Köln 5-0 and then Augsburg 5-2. It’s the club’s highest-scoring run since 2018 when they thrashed Paderborn 6-0 and then saw off Bayer Leverkusen 6-2 in consecutive games. The only time Bayern have ever scored at least five times in more matches in a row was from 1976 to 1977, when they did so four times on the spin.
5. Müller set for club record
Thomas Müller chalked up his 52nd win in a DFB Cup game (excluding penalty shootouts) with the triumph over Augsburg in October. That saw him draw level with Mirko Votaka as the player with the most victories in the competition’s history. But that isn’t the only record he could break in Mainz. The second-round tie was the 33-year-old’s 62nd appearance in Germany’s cup, taking him level with namesake Gerd Müller and just one behind Bayern’s record holder in the competition, Sepp Maier (63).
Thomas Müller brought up his 52nd DFB Cup win with a befitting 5-2 win over Augsburg in the second round.
6. Choupo and the cup
Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting has had a direct hand in 12 goals in his four DFB Cup appearances for Bayern, scoring eight and setting up four. Those eight goals are more than double what he managed in his first 18 DFB Cup outings for other teams (three) and more than any FCB player has had in their first four cup outings for the club since Bundesliga promotion in 1965. His 10 goal involvements since the start of last season (six goals, four assists) are also the most of any player in the competition.
7. Last 16 the end of the road for Mainz last season
Mainz saw off Erzgebirge Aue and Lübeck with two 3-0 wins to reach the last 16 of the cup for the second year running. They had only passed the second round once in the preceding eight seasons, getting to the quarter-finals in 2017/18. However, they fell at this stage last year with a 3-1 loss at Bochum. Never before have the 05ers been knocked out in the round of 16 in two consecutive campaigns.
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