Two days before the cup clash away to Bochum the Bayern players upped the pace at the Säbener Strasse on Monday. At the end of the day’s training session the FCB pros practised shooting, closely watched by Pep Guardiola. The drives and volleys rained in from all sides and there were goals aplenty, from cheeky lobs into the far corner to low shots close to the near post. Thomas Müller, Mario Götze & Co visibly enjoyed the exercise, but the happiest face on Monday lunchtime belonged to Franck Ribéry.
The Frenchman completed his first full team training since being sidelined for two months due to a pulled thigh muscle. “It's nice that Francky's back,” Arjen Robben told FCB.tv, delighted with the return of his fellow winger. “We need him. We have difficult but wonderful months ahead of us.”
'WE HAVE TO WATCH OUT'
On Wednesday at 20.30 CET the Reds face “a very intense game. It's not going to be easy. We have to watch out,” according to Robben. The side lying fifth in Bundesliga 2 are not to be underestimated, the Dutchman cautioned, referring to their 2-0 victory over promotion candidates Freiburg last weekend. In the winter preparation period Bochum saw off no fewer than three Bundesliga teams: they won 4-1 against Hertha Berlin, 5-2 against Mönchengladbach and 2-1 against Leverkusen.
“We've been warned. It's meaningless to speak of a second division team. They could compete in the Bundesliga just as well,” stressed Robben. “We need to be highly focused and deliver the best performance we're capable of.” Just as the stars did on Monday lunchtime.
