Bayern Munich Loses In The German Cup Final Against Eintracht Frankfurt
Uninspired Bayern Munich suffered a surprise loss in the German Cup final against Eintracht Frankfurt (3-1) this Saturday in Berlin, in the last match of their legendary coach Jupp Heynckes on the sidelines.
The man of the match was Eintracht Frankfurt's Croatian player, Ante Rebic, who scored his team's first two goals (11, 82), beating Bayern's central defenders Mats Hummels and Niklas Süle in speed.
Robert Lewandowski had equalized for the Munich side (53), giving hope to Colombian player James Rodríguez's team.
But in the last minutes, when Bayern was attacking the most, Eintracht scored two goals.
The 2-1 was scored by Rebic in the 82nd minute, putting the title in the hands of the Frankfurt team, before the third goal by Eintracht, scored by Serbian player Mijat Gacinovic in injury time (90+6).
Gacinovic scored an empty-net goal after Bayern's goalkeeper Sven Ulreich went up to attack a corner kick from his team.
"This final is for Heynckes", said Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, president of Bayern Munich, before the match.
"From a human point of view, Jupp is the most wonderful coach a club can have(...) And since we have to bid him farewell, we want to do it with the double", he added.
Were the Munich players paralyzed by emotion? Maybe, but it was in any case Croatian coach Niko Kovac, current Eintracht Frankfurt coach who will be Bayern's coach next season, who ended up as a hero between these two teams, separated by a long distance in the Bundesliga.
Bayern won the league with 84 points, while Eintracht finished eighth with 49.
Bayern Munich vs. Eintracht Frankfurt: Lineups
Bayern Munich: Ulreich, Süle, Hummels, Thiago, Ribéry, Martínez, Lewandoski, James, Müller, Alaba, Kimmich
Eintracht Frankfurt: Hradecky, Rebic, De Guzmán, Salcedo, Willems, Boateng, Abraham, Hasebe, Da Costa, Wolf, Mascarell
Bayern Munich is the clear favorite, but the last matchday of the Bundesliga, where the Bavarians were defeated 1-4 by Stuttgart, showed that, after their elimination from the Champions League, there has been a certain relaxation that could take its toll.
Bayern Munich vs. Eintracht Frankfurt: Schedule worldwide
| Country | Time |
| Mexico | 1:00 p.m. |
| Peru | 1:00 p.m. |
| Colombia | 1:00 p.m. |
| Ecuador | 1:00 p.m. |
| Venezuela | 2:00 p.m. |
| Bolivia | 2:00 p.m. |
| Paraguay | 3:00 p.m. |
| Chile | 3:00 p.m. |
| Uruguay | 3:00 p.m. |
| Argentina | 3:00 p.m. |
| Spain | 8:00 p.m. |
Personally, the big news at Bayern Munich is the return of Manuel Neuer to the squad after eight months of absence, although Heynckes plans for Sven Ulreich to be the starting goalkeeper tomorrow.
"Manuel has trained without problems, he is well prepared and will be in the squad but, I say this to avoid speculations, he won't start", said Heynckes in the press conference.
On the contrary, central defender Jerome Boateng is out with muscle problems, Arjen Robben for the same reason, and Arturo Vidal is recovering from a knee injury.
Captain Thomas Müller, who had stomach problems, has recovered and, according to Heynckes, will be able to play from the beginning tomorrow.
Eintracht Frankfurt, on the other hand, will try to pull off a surprise and at the top of the club, the desire to take revenge against Bayern for Kovac's signing is undeniable and has not been well received by the surroundings.
Kovac has a lot at stake in this match, not only because of the need to say goodbye with some dignity from Eintracht, but also because he needs to earn the respect of the Bayern dressing room for the next season.
Bayern Munich vs. Eintracht Frankfurt: Probable lineups
Bayern Munich: Ulreich; Kimmich, Süle, Boateng, Alaba; Thiago; Tolisso, James; Müller, Lewandowski and Ribery.
Eintracht Frankfurt: Hradecky; Abraham, Hasebe, Salcedo; Da Costa, Mascarell, KP Boateng, Willems; Wolf; Jovic, Rebic.