dyton mupawaenda
BAYERN Munich veteran Thomas Mueller can win his 13th league title in Germany with victory at RB Leipzig today, as his summer departure after 25 seasons at the club draws near.
Eight points clear of defending champions Bayer Leverkusen with three games remaining, Bayern will clinch the title if they beat Leipzig this weekend.
Bayern’s last league win at Leipzig came in 2021. If the Bavarians falter, they will still wrap up the Bundesliga crown if Leverkusen fail to beat Freiburg tomorrow. Another league title would be a fitting farewell for Mueller, who joined Bayern aged just 10 and played his 500th Bundesliga game last week.
A one-club player, Mueller has amassed a remarkable 32 trophies with Bayern, including two Champions Leagues, but will leave at the end of the season after he was not offered a contract extension.
No player has ever won 13 German Bundesliga titles and only Manchester United’s Ryan Giggs has hit that mark in any of Europe’s top five leagues.
“It sounds good doesn’t it?” Mueller said of the record in an interview with the Bundesliga website on Wednesday.
“I won my first title in 2010. You’re holding something heavy in your hands and it gives you the feeling that it’s not really easy to win the thing.
“There’s always a lot of work and you have to perform over a long period.
“That’s why the satisfaction when you win the league trophy is greater than the Champions League or the German Cup.”
With his departure edging closer, Mueller has been celebrated by fans at home and away, but has been quick to remind everyone he is not on a farewell tour and that there is a title at stake.
“On the topic of pride, I’m someone who lives life looking forward rather than looking back too much,” said Mueller. “Looking back is nice and then you can toast to it and ask: ‘What are you doing tomorrow?’”
Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich can secure a 34th German league crown today at RB Leipzig, having opened up an eight-point advantage with three games left, while Borussia Dortmund are desperate for a top-four finish to rescue their season.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany is on the brink of reclaiming the Bundesliga title for the German record champions in his first season in charge, a year after Bayer Leverkusen won a surprise league and Cup double.
The Bavarians are on 75 points, with Leverkusen in second with 67 before travelling to fourth-placed Champions League hopefuls Freiburg tomorrow.
Bayern’s top scorer Harry Kane, looking to land the first title of his career, is suspended for the game.
His team will win the title if they beat fifth-placed Leipzig or at least match Leverkusen’s result against Freiburg, who have 51 points. Even if Bayern and Leverkusen both lose, the Bavarians will win the title.
With the top two spots wrapped up, at least five teams are in with a fighting chance for a top-four finish that leads to automatic Champions League qualification next season.
Eintracht Frankfurt, who face European hopefuls Mainz 05 tomorrow, are third on 55 points, with a four-point gap to Freiburg, and almost certain of a Champions League spot.
Dortmund, sixth with 48 points and three behind Freiburg, have endured a rollercoaster domestic season and, from early title contenders, are battling to secure a Champions League place to rescue something from an otherwise disappointing campaign.
The Ruhr Valley club host VfL Wolfsburg tomorrow. Dortmund have won four of their last five Bundesliga matches, with coach Niko Kovac and his players confident they can still finish in the top four.
“What has characterised us in the past weeks is that everyone wants the success of the team,” said Dortmund defender Waldemar Anton. “That is how we got our belief back.
“We just kept at it and that is why I am happy that we are still in with a realistic chance.” – AFP.
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter