Hansi Flick hopes Bayern Munich benefit from a little luck as they aim to put the cherry on top of an excellent season by winning the Champions League.
Bayern excelled after the coronavirus-enforced break in the season, turning a potential title battle with Borussia Dortmund into a procession before lifting the DFB-Pokal to complete a domestic double.
After enjoying a short break, their focus switches to Europe. They have a last-16 tie with Chelsea to complete, having won the first leg 3-0 at Stamford Bridge in February .
The German side are not only expected to progress at the expense of the Blues but also challenge for the trophy when the knockout stages continue in Portugal, even if the draw has not been kind.
Flick is unwilling to get too carried away, though.
“We did what we had to do in winning the Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal,” the Bayern boss told the media on Sunday.
“We achieved what is expected of us every year. Now it’s about winning the cherry, the icing on the cake, winning what’s special.
“But I don’t want to look too far ahead. If you look at the path ahead of us, it’s not going to be easy to get to the final, even if we get past Chelsea.
“You need to be ready and absolutely 100 per cent alert when these tournaments start – that’s what we expect from our players. We expect absolute quality, absolute concentration and absolute intensity – and maybe a little bit of luck.
“What’s important for me is that people realise that I’m very optimistic. I look at Bayern, this team and this squad of players, in a very positive way. It’s a real joy for the coaches who work here.
“I’m absolutely thrilled with my team, with the atmosphere in the locker room and the coaching team. Everyone is desperate and determined to win.
“We know that you need a bit of luck, but we want to do everything we can to be prepared.”
Bayern will face the winner of the incomplete tie between Barcelona and Napoli in the last eight , while Real Madrid, Manchester City or Juventus are potential opponents in the semi-finals.
Yet Flick’s primary focus is Chelsea, who have impressed him recently with their performances in the Premier League.
“We have to walk through the quarter-final door now, make sure we win that home game against Chelsea, or at least make it through to the next round,” he said.
“We need to try to win to gain more confidence, then go to where we all want to go – Lisbon and this Champions League tournament.
“But first we have this Chelsea obstacle, they’ve been playing a very impressive style in the last few weeks and it’s going to be important to be concentrated, focused and approach the game that way.
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