BERLIN // Bayern Munich’s Thomas Mueller has called for the German media to support – rather than knock – the European champions ahead of Tuesday’s Uefa Champions League semi-final second leg against Real Madrid.
The Spanish giants come to Munich's Allianz Arena on Tuesday holding a 1-0 lead from the first leg, when Bayern failed to score in Madrid despite dominating possession.
The German media have criticised Pep Guardiola’s side after a string of below-par and lacklustre performances since winning the Bundesliga title last month with a record seven games to spare.
However, Bayern twice came from behind to seal a 5-2 league win at home to Werder Bremen on Saturday and Mueller said the Bavarians now need all the support they can get.
“Until then, we need full support from everyone around the club, especially from the media and press.
“We are all German. If we don’t make it on Tuesday, then as far as I am concerned you can take us apart, but before that we need support.”
The flattering scoreline against Bremen failed to mask Bayern’s woeful first-half defending, which sounded the alarm bells for coach Pep Guardiola given the danger of conceding an away goal to Madrid.
Bayern have conceded the first goal in seven of their nine matches since winning the Bundesliga title late last month with a record seven matches to spare.
Once again the Munich defence was left wanting in the first 45 minutes before the reigning European champions roared back.
“That is the first time that I have been a bit disappointed and sad about the first half – the fans didn’t deserve that,” Guardiola said.
“We were better in the second half, that’s good for the mood ahead of the Madrid match, but it will be a completely different game.
“I trust my team and I hope that we can all manage it together.”
Bayern blasted Werder 7-0 in Bremen last December, but Czech defender Theodor Gebre Selassie fired the visitors into a 1-0 lead after 10 minutes at the Allianz Arena.
France winger Franck Ribery equalised before Aaron Hunt capitalised on some poor marking for Bremen’s second to make it 2-1 at the break.
Bayern equalised again when Mueller headed on Ribery’s corner and Claudio Pizarro was on hand to stab home his shot to make it 2-2 on 54 minutes, then the Peru veteran added his second against his old club four minutes later.
Bastian Schweinsteiger then powered home a header on 61 minutes before Netherlands winger Arjen Robben hit the top corner of the net to make it 5-2 on 74 minutes, less than 60 seconds after coming off the bench.
Ribery has come in for criticism after several below-par performances, but Bayern captain Philipp Lahm backed the Frenchman for Tuesday’s Madrid clash.
“I have no concerns about Franck and I am convinced he’ll put in an outstanding display on Tuesday – to help put us in the final,” Lahm said.
“I’m happy with how we’ve played, it’s much more fun when we’re in control.”
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
LIST OF INVITEES
Shergo Kurdi (am)
Rayhan Thomas
Saud Al Sharee (am)
Min Woo Lee
Todd Clements
Matthew Jordan
AbdulRahman Al Mansour (am)
Matteo Manassero
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Othman Al Mulla
Shaun Norris
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
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- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
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The biog
Age: 35
Inspiration: Wife and kids
Favourite book: Changes all the time but my new favourite is Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
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Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
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MATCH INFO
First Test at Barbados
West Indies won by 381 runs
Second Test at Antigua
West Indies won by 10 wickets
Third Test at St Lucia
February 9-13
'Panga'
Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta
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Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
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