VfL Bochum gained a precious point on Sunday, when the came back from three goals behind to draw 3-3 against Borussia Mönchengladbach. Schalke 04 started into the season with a 2-1 victory at 1. FC Nürnberg, while DFB Cup winners Werder Bremen fell 2-3 to Eintracht Frankfurt. 1899 Hoffenheim and Bayern München drew 1-1 later on Saturday in the evening match. The new Bundesliga opened on Friday with Champion VfL Wolfsburg beating VfB Stuttgart 2-0.
The fixtures of Round 1
The match on Friday (8.30 pm)
VfL Wolfsburg - VfB Stuttgart 2-0 (0-0)
The matches on Saturday (3.30/6.30 pm)
Borussia Dortmund - 1. FC Köln 1-0 (0-0)
1. FC Nürnberg - Schalke 04 1-2 (0-1)
Werder Bremen - Eintracht Frankfurt 2-3 (2-2)
Hertha BSC Berlin - Hannover 96 1-0 (0-0)
FSV Mainz 05 - Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 (1-2)
1899 Hoffenheim - Bayern München 1-1 (1-1)
The matches on Sunday (3.30/5.30 pm)
VfL Bochum - Bor. Mönchengladbach 3-3 (0-3)
SC Freiburg - Hamburger SV 1-1 (0-1)
[DFB.de]
Image: Bundesliga.de
Wolfsburg striker Grafite has been voted Germany's footballer of the year by the country's football writers and Kicker magazine.
The Brazilian striker earned over a third of all the votes cast thanks to his 28 goals in 25 Bundesliga matches last season which contributed to the Wolves winning their first league title.
That unexpected success also earned Wolfsburg manager Felix Magath the coach of the year award for the third time in his coaching career.
He first won the accolade in 2003 while in charge of Stuttgart before winning it again two years later after leading Bayern Munich to a league and cup double.
The 55-year-old was the overwhelming choice this year, obtaining 778 out of 1,042 votes with second-placed Markus Babbel of Stuttgart earning a mere 65, which was still almost three times as many as Hertha Berlin's Lucien Favre, who came third in the vote.
Unsurprisingly, Wolfsburg dominated the players' vote with Edin Dzeko landing third, just two votes behind Stuttgart's Mario Gomez, and Zvjezdan Misimovic coming sixth behind Werder Bremen's Diego and Franck Ribery of Bayern Munich.
Inka Grings was the overwhelming winner of the women's footballer of the year award ahead of last year's winner Birgit Prinz and Fatmire Bajramaj.
[Soccernet]
The top duel between defending German champions VfL Wolfsburg and last season's third-placed club VfB Stuttgart will kick off the 47th Bundesliga season on 7 August at 8.30p.m.
The first match of the new season sees the new Wolfsburg coach, Armin Veh, play against his former club with which he won the German championship in 2007. The opening match will be broadcast live on free-to-air TV (ARD), subscription TV and the internet (SKY) as well as on IPTV (Telekom, Liga-Total).
Record championship holders Bayern Munich will start the 2009/10 season with an away match against 1899 Hoffenheim. Bundesliga 2 champions, SC Freiburg, will play their first match at home against Hamburger SV.
The new Bundesliga 2 season will also be kicked off by two top teams: 1. FC Kaiserslautern will play at home against Spvgg Greuther Fürth. Two newly promoted teams will fight it out as well: Fortuna Düsseldorf will host SC Paderborn 07 in the Düsseldorfer Arena.
[DFB.de]
Continuing the boom enjoyed since the 2006 World Cup, new figures show total attendance in the league was 17,580,821 last season.
That equates to an average of almost 42,000 per game.
"We are proud that professional football in Germany again attracts the most fans in the world," said German Football League (DFL) general manager Christian Muller.
"The keys to the success are a balanced, exciting Bundesliga with modern, safe stadia and the lowest ticket prices of any European top league.
"This is what is attracting the fans."
The Bundesliga can look forward to breaking the record again next season, with Bayer Leverkusen moving into their renovated BayArena home and Hoffenheim spending the full season at their Rhein-Neckar Arena home.
Furthermore, Arminia Bielefeld, who suffered some of the lowest attendances, have been relegated and replaced with, among others, Nurnberg, who attract around 50,000 to their Franken Stadion.
Mainz and Freiburg are the other two clubs to be promoted.
Those three clubs ensured the second division continued to attract a healthy following last season.
An average of 15,550 fans attended games with an average ticket price of 13.35 euros attracting the second-highest ever number of fans to second division games in a full season.
Ticket prices in the Bundesliga remain stable too with an average cost of 20.79 euros making it the cheapest league to follow, according to the DFL's official website, bundesliga.de.
[ESPNstar.com]
German midfielder and VfB Stuttgart captain Thomas Hitzlsperger has said that the Bundesliga is among the most competitive leagues in the world.
"This year was a case in point when Wolfsburg went the entire distance for the championship to be decided. There are very few leagues that are as competitive as the Bundesliga," Hitzlsperger affirmed.
Born in 1982, Hitzlsperger spent the early part of his career playing for Aston Villa in the English Premiership after being picked up from the Bayern Munich junior team on a free transfer in 2000. He had a trial with Scottish side Celtic after leaving Bayern, but he still opted for Aston Villa.
"The Bundesliga is attractive. It has a huge following all around the world and I think we match any other league in the world when it comes to talent and passion for the game," stated Hitzlsperger.
After his stint in England, the German midfielder - nicknamed 'The Hammer' for his powerful left foot - signed for VfB Stuttgart in 2005. After becoming a regular, he made a large contribution to their success while playing in 30 of the team's 34 league games and scoring seven times.
His most crucial equaliser came in the 27th minute of Stuttgart's final match of the season against Energie Cottbus. Had Stuttgart lost that crucial fixture, Schalke 04 would have won the league title.
"There is no need to go anywhere else as the Bundesliga is attractive enough all over the world. This is where the best players in the world play," he said.
The Stuttgart captain was awed by the feat achieved by underdogs Wolfsburg in winning the league this year.
"They did not do anything great, they just played consistent and believed in themselves. They deserved to win the title," he stated.
This is the second time that Hitzlsperger has come to Dubai. His first time was during VfB Stuttgart's winter break training camp and friendly last year. He still has a year on his contract left with VfB Stuttgart.
"I am aware of the conditions here and hopefully, this should help me in some way," he said.
[Gulf News]
The German Football League (DFL) will continue to work with CCTV for an additional three years, thanks to a contract extension recently announced on Bundesliga.com.
As a 15-year partner of the DFL, Chinese broadcaster CCTV is no stranger to German football, with the latest deal renewal expected to further advance the league’s Asian presence.
DFL Chief Marketing Officer Tom Bender commented on the prolonged partnership, noting that 92 percent of Chinese football fans are already familiar with the Bundesliga. He attributed the widespread recognition to the DFL’s strategy with CCTV, which brings Bundesliga live matches to 340 million households in China on a regular basis.
From the start of the upcoming season through to 2012, CCTV will air Bundesliga via CCTV5 and CCTV High Definition Channel. At least two Bundesliga matches will be broadcast every matchday, along with an accompanying highlights programme and the DFL’s own ‘GOAL – The Bundesliga Magazine.’
DFL Sports Enterprises CEO Robert Niemann further pointed out that China as ‘one of the most important core markets for the Bundesliga’, with CCTV holding an 80 percent market share.
Speaking on behalf of CCTV, Director Jiang Helping advised that the Bundesliga is quite popular in China, and its fan base continues to grow. Helping indicated that CCTV is ‘very proud’ to continue its partnership with the Bundesliga as a way of bringing premier action to viewers.
[euFootball.BIZ]
FC Nürnberg will play in the German Bundesliga again next season, following a year in the 2nd Bundesliga. They were promoted after they wrapped up a 2-0 second-leg play-off win at home to Energie Cottbus on Sunday. The result means Energie Cottbus will play their football in the 2nd Bundesliga next season.
Striker Christian Eigler scored the first goal in front of a sell-out crowd of 46,780 fans after 29 minutes before Slovakia's Marek Mintal scored the second on 37 minutes to seal the victory. After Ghana striker Isaac Boakye had scored twice to seal Nuremberg's 3-0 win in Thursday's first-leg, Nuremberg have now earned their place back in Germany's top-tier with a 5-0 win on aggregate.
[Dfb.de]
It looks like Nuremberg are going to return to the Bundesliga next season after their 3-0 win at Energie Cottbus in the first leg of Thursday's promotion play-off.
Ghana striker Isaac Boakye scored twice for Nuremberg, who are now in a commanding position to win promotion. The second leg will be played back at their home ground on Sunday.
The German Football Federation (DFB) started the promotion play-off for the first time this season. It is played between the side that finished third from bottom of the Bundesliga and the team that finished third in the second division.
When Werder Bremen take on Bayer Leverkusen in the German Cup final on Saturday (1800 GMT), it will be their last chance to salvage a European spot from an otherwise hapless season.
The pre-season Bundesliga favourites, who ended up in 10th place after showing only occasional sparks of their brilliance, also missed out on European glory, losing in the UEFA Cup final to Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk last week.
With playmaker Diego joining Juventus at the end of the season, Werder are asking the Brazilian to put in one final breath-taking performance to win the cup.
Mercurial Diego has been sparkling when it really mattered, at time almost single-handedly guiding them further in their competitions.
His suspension from the UEFA Cup final was crucial, leaving Werder with no creative play in midfield and no trophy.
"This (German Cup) match is the most important one, not only during my time at Werder but the most important one of my life," Diego said.
"I am happy to be able to give something back to Werder for all their devotion. I am fully motivated for this."
Coach Thomas Schaaf, rumoured to be on his way out at the end of the season after 10 years, will have captain Frank Baumann and Sebastian Boenisch back in the squad as he bids to bring back the cup after Werder's last triumph in 2004.
BAYER COLLAPSE
Leverkusen coach Bruno Labbadia had also imagined his season differently after sitting in fifth place halfway through. But his young team's second round collapse, including eight defeats, saw them crash out of the European spots, finishing a disappointing ninth.
His job is now on the line, with defeat in the final seemingly sealing his fate after club officials called the season so far "unsatisfactory."
Leverkusen can play stunning, fast-paced football when two of the league's most dangerous strikers, Stefan Kiessling and Patrick Helmes, are in top form and Brazilian midfielder Renato Augusto orchestrates the attacks.
However, since their sensational 4-2 German Cup quarter-final win over Bayern Munich, Leverkusen have failed to replicate their good form, needing extra time to oust Mainz 05 4-1 in the last four.
Captain Simon Rolfes is fully fit to play in their third final appearance and Labbadia can only hope his strikers will be in the mood for goals to win their first German Cup since 1993.
[Reuters via Guardian]
Bayern Munich will open talks with Stuttgart next week over the possibility of signing Germany international striker Mario Gomez, according to the Bavarian club's general manager Uli Hoeness.
Hoeness told DSF television today he is hopeful the two clubs will be able to agree on the transfer of Gomez to Bayern.
"We will start talks next week and then we will see what comes of it," he said. "I would say today he is a very interesting player. I am relatively optimistic."
Funds to finance a deal should not have to come from the sale of Bayern's star midfielder Franck Ribery, however.
"He has a contract for another two years and there is no get-out clause at all," said Hoeness. "(Keeping him) is not so difficult."
Hoeness is confident keeping Ribery and signing Gomez will enable new coach Louis van Gaal to plan for a successful season next year and he has every confidence the Dutchman will show a better eye for talent than his predecessor Jurgen Klinsmann.
For the first time since Klinsmann was sacked in April, Hoeness criticised his leadership of the club.
"No coach has ever had as much of an influence on things in the history of FC Bayern as Klinsmann," he said. "His wishes were not only fulfilled, they were over-fulfilled. To claim he was not allowed to do what he wanted is wrong.
"The only concrete suggestion Klinsmann had was to sign Landon Donovan and (reserve team coach) Hermann Gerland said he would never even have played him in the reserve team."
Hoeness also today confirmed Christian Nerlinger will be taking over his position at the club this summer.
"Nerlinger will become our director of sport on July 1," said the 57-year-old, who had already announced his intention to leave his post at the end of the year after three decades.
By then, Hoeness hopes to have found another man to work alongside Nerlinger in a dual role to take care of the marketing and sponsorship side of the business while Nerlinger can concentrate on team affairs.
[Soccernet]
Former VfB Stuttgart coach Armin Veh will take over from Felix Magath at champions VfL Wolfsburg, the club said on Sunday.
Veh, who led VfB Stuttgart to their 2007 title, would officially be presented on Monday, the club said.
Wolfsburg chairman Hans-Dieter Poetsch told ZDF television Veh would be the new coach late on Saturday, hours after the team had clinched their first Bundesliga title with a 5-1 win over Werder Bremen.
Magath, who will join Schalke 04 after a two-year spell at Wolfsburg, said Veh was a good choice.
"If you asked me I would have named Armin Veh. He produced outstanding work in Stuttgart. I think he is the right man," he told DSF television on Sunday.
Veh was sacked by Stuttgart in November 2008 after a poor run of results.
Franz Beckenbauer feels Wolfsburg manager Felix Magath "should be knighted" for winning the Bundesliga title this year.
Wolfsburg beat Bayern Munich to the title by two points to be crowned German champions for the first time in their history.
"Felix Magath has managed to make an average team into German champions," he said. "Such a success is worth more than winning the title in consecutive years with FC Bayern. He should be knighted for it."
Magath led Bayern Munich to back-to-back league and cup doubles, but was sacked one game into the second half of the 2006/07 season with the record champions lying in third place.
They went on to end the season fourth and missed out on a place in the Champions League.
Seeing Magath win the title with a rank outsider will surely hurt Bayern, but Beckenbauer insists Wolfsburg are worthy champions.
"When you play as impressively as Wolfsburg have done in the second half of the season, when they took Bayern and Werder Bremen apart 5-1, and play with such consistency and proven their strength at home, then it is fine," he told Premiere television.
"They have won 16 from 17 home matches. They have become German champions at home and that is honourable."
Magath was humble in accepting his third Bundesliga title before he moves to his eighth managerial position next season with the aim of making Schalke his third title winners, although he had tears in his eyes as he looked back on a successful two years with the Wolves.
"We maybe did not have the best team, but we played the best football," he said. "We deserved to be champions. Leaving this club is very hard.
"The expectations at Schalke are always high and when you go there as the manager who has just won the title then there will be people who think that just that alone will be enough (to win the league).
"I can only guarantee that I will give 100% of my abilities to take Schalke forward, but we still have to work sufficiently."
[Soccernet]
Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp admitted it will take a long time to come to terms with the disappointment of missing out on a place in Europe next season after his side slipped to sixth position in the Bundesliga in the very last minute of the season.
A 1-1 draw at Borussia Monchengladbach would have been enough for the Westphalians to qualify for the Europa League had Hamburg not scored a stoppage-time winner over Eintracht Frankfurt.
"We have worked hard, but not reached our goal," said Klopp. "The disappointment is huge. We have not managed to reach what may not have been the aim we set at the start of the season, but which became one as the season progressed.
"It would take too long to describe how big the disappointment is. But I am proud of my team and proud of our fans, who have been sensational all season.
"I hope we can build on this next season. The way in which the team and the fans have come together is incredible and I can only promise that we will continue where we had to leave off today."
The players' frustration was even greater and Sebastian Kehl and Roman Weidenfeller almost came to blows after the final whistle.
"We were on fire for the last few weeks and then all of a sudden everything is destroyed in the last minute," said Kehl. "That certainly brings out all your frustration."
Klopp condemned Weidenfeller for his verbal tirade at Kehl, saying he "should not present such an image, even after a game like this".
The only positive words came from Gladbach boss Hans Meyer, who said avoiding relegation was "the biggest thing in 38 years as a coach".
However, his future remains unclear. He has a contract until 2010 and would not be drawn on whether he would be fulfilling it.
[Soccernet]
Mainz 05 became the second team to win promotion to the Bundesliga on Sunday after beating Oberhausen 4-0 to finish second on 63 points. Freiburg have already secured promotion with top spot while third-placed Nurnberg, who beat 1860 Munich 2-1, face a promotion play-off against Energie Cottbus, third from bottom in the Bundesliga.
Hamburg coach Martin Jol claimed his team deserved their place in the Europa League next season, even if they secured it with practically the final kick of the season.
The northern Germany side threw away a two-goal lead at Eintracht Frankfurt yesterday to risk missing out on a fifth-place finish, but a stoppage-time goal from Piotr Trochowski sent 10,000 travelling fans inside Frankfurt's Waldstadion into delirium.
That goal was enough to take Hamburg above Borussia Dortmund and into Europe next season.
"The joy is immense," said Jol. "The team has deserved this success and I am most pleased for our fans. They are incredible with 10,000 of them following us here to Frankfurt, which is amazing.
"They have deserved this European qualification as much as the team."
Trochowski's goal saved Hamburg from a third bitter disappointment in the last few weeks after their dreams of a treble ended with a hat-trick of defeats to Werder Bremen in the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal, the UEFA Cup and the Bundesliga.
Although they came close to winning the league title, finishing fifth was still a positive achievement, according to chairman Bernd Hoffmann.
"Of course there could have been more in this season for us, but overall, the season has got to be regarded as a success," he told the club's website. "We have qualified for Europe once again and are therefore continuing in the right direction.
"Considering the whole season, the team and our supporters have deserved this success."
Frankfurt coach Friedhelm Funkel said goodbye to the club he has coached for the last five years.
"I have had a lot of fun working here and had five fantastic years here," he said. "It is obviously disappointing that we have not managed to win the final game."
[Soccernet]
VfL Wolfsburg sealed their first Bundesliga title by demolishing Werder Bremen 5-1 on the final day of the season on Saturday.
Hundreds of fans poured on to the pitch at the final whistle, cheering and hugging the players and ripping the shirts off their backs, to celebrate a remarkable achievement for a team regarded as rank outsiders at the start of the season.
Bayern Munich, who went into the final round of matches two points behind, at least managed to clinch second spot, and automatic entry to the Champions League, thanks to a 2-1 win over direct rivals VfB Stuttgart, who finished third.
Stuttgart will go into Champions League qualifying, while Hertha Berlin and Hamburg SV will play in the new Europa League.
Arminia Bielefeld and Karlsruhe were relegated while Energie Cottbus will play a relegation play-off with the third best team of the second division.
Wolfsburg, holding that precious two-point advantage, ensured nerves would not be an issue as they roared into a 3-0 lead through Zvjezdan Misimovic, Grafite and an own goal from Sebastian Proedl.
Werder pulled one back through Diego before Grafite and Edin Dzeko sealed the title with two second half goals.
"It is a dream come true," Magath, who will be leaving to join Schalke next season, told Premiere. "Before the season started I never thought we had a chance to win the championship.
"It is hard to be leaving now, obviously," added a soaking Magath, who led Bayern Munich to successive league and cup doubles before being sacked by the Bavarians.
"I am not quite dry. We were in the locker room and there was quite a bit of champagne flying through the air."
More than 30,000 fans in the stands and on the pitch broke into songs when captain Josue lifted the Bundesliga shield to a clear blue sky.
Wolfsburg became the first team in the history of the Bundesliga to have two strikers score 20 goals or more in one season, with Grafite netting 28 times and Bosnian Dzeko 26.
"It is just insane," said Dzeko. "It is great feeling to be German champions. I did not think it was possible to win it in only my second year in Germany. We are going to do a lot of celebrating."
Bayern, who needed a slip-up by Wolfsburg to have any chance, managed to hold on to a 2-1 win against Stuttgart after an own goal by Khalid Boulahrouz and one from captain Mark van Bommel had put them in the lead. Mario Gomez pulled one back.
"We won four matches and had one draw. I think I fulfilled my mission," said interim Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes, hired to salvage Champions League qualification after Juergen Klinsmann was sacked in late April.
"It is just a shame that we could not win the championship. This team has so much potential. Normally a team this good should win the title," Heynckes added.
[Soccernet]
VfL Wolfsburg coach Felix Magath has been around too long to just sit back and enjoy watching his players clinch their first Bundesliga title on Saturday with a win over Werder Bremen on the last matchday (1330 GMT).
With a two-point lead over record champions Bayern Munich and VfB Stuttgart going into the last match, a win will guarantee the Bundesliga title and even a draw or a defeat could be enough to clinch it.
Magath, used to success on the big stage as player and coach, is in no mood for early celebrations, however, demanding that his players keep their focus and close their eyes to the green-and-white decorations already on show in the city streets and squares.
"We are not yet sucking on the candy," Magath warned this week, after sending off Daniel Adlung during training for what the strict disciplinarian perceived as lack of commitment in practice.
"We must stay focused for another 90 minutes. If we play half as good as in the last two matches then it should be enough," Magath said.
It will be hard for Wolfsburg to actually lose the title in what has been the most gripping season finale in years.
With a near-perfect home record of 15 wins and a draw in 16 games, the match against Bremen, fresh from their UEFA Cup final defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk and ahead of the May 30 German Cup final, should be straightforward.
Even second-placed Bayern are now only hoping for a miracle, similar to the one in 2001 when a last-gasp goal against Hamburg SV won them the title as Schalke 04 were already celebrating.
This time, though, matters are not entirely in Bayern's hands.
The champions face Stuttgart (1330), direct competitors, who would be more than happy to settle for second place and win automatic Champions League qualification.
"I don't want to think about the title. Second spot is realistic even though we have a Herculean task," said Stuttgart coach Markus Babbel, a former Bayern player.
Stuttgart have salvaged what looked like a lost season, with Babbel taking over in late November and guiding them up the table. A win in Munich would be the crowning achievement of his first season as Bundesliga coach before even obtaining the proper coaching licence.
"The dice have been cast by 99.5 percent," Bayern General Manager Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said. "The title is in Wolfsburg's hands and I do not see them dropping it. If we are second after the game against Stuttgart we will be happy with the season."
[Reuters via Soccernet]
Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes has admitted defeat in his side's bid to defend their Bundesliga title this season.
With one game of the season remaining, Bayern trail Wolfsburg by two points and must beat Stuttgart at the Allianz Arena on Saturday to stand any chance of winning the title.
But Heynckes, who is unbeaten in four games in charge since replacing Jurgen Klinsmann last month, is being realistic.
"Wolfsburg are not going to let the title be taken from them," he said.
Bayern have yet to sit on top of the Bundesliga all season and Heynckes suggests he would have been able to take them there if he had replaced Klinsmann a little earlier.
"Our surge came too late," he told the Rheinische Post newspaper. "The team is working better all the time and is enjoying its football and is presenting itself well.
"Even if Stuttgart have a run going, I am convinced that we will beat them on Saturday."
A defeat for Bayern is almost inconceivable since it could mean another season in the UEFA Europa League rather than the Champions League.
Keeping hold of the likes of Franck Ribery and signing other big-name players would be compromised by such a scenario, leaving a lot riding on Saturday's final game of the season, even if the title is probably beyond Bayern.
• Axed Bayern Munich coach Juergen Klinsmann has blamed the club's powerful chiefs and his former players for his failed 10-month stint at the German champions.
"I hit the limits with my way of thought because I often had to deal with people who were unwilling to develop further. I wanted to take the next step," Klinsmann told stern TV on Wednesday.
"They are all alpha males and also need their space. They are all personalities you have to work with."
Klinsmann also blamed players for neglecting the Bundesliga in favour of Champions League glory. Bayern were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Barcelona.
"They were very motivated for the Champions League. But there was lack of consistency (in the league). They thought the Bundesliga would run by itself. We dropped silly points."
The 44-year-old said he should have asked for three or four signings.
"It was a mistake to accept compromises because you are dealing with alpha males," he said.
"One of the mistakes was to take over the squad that was given to me. I should have been clear from the start and say 'I need three or four players'. I allowed myself to be convinced."
Bayern, who are in second place two points off the top with a match left to play, take on VfB Stuttgart on Saturday and need a slip-up by leaders Wolfsburg to clinch the title.
[Soccernet]
Bayern Munich would have won the Bundesliga this season had Jurgen Klinsmann been given the chance to complete his first season in charge of the Bavarian giants.
Klinsmann only replaced Ottmar Hitzfeld in July 2008 but was sacked last month after suffering defeats to title rivals VfLWolfsburg and FC Schalke 04 and a humiliating Champions League quarter-final defeat against which included a 4-0 thumping in the Camp Nou.
Louis van Gaal, who led AZ Alkmaar to the Dutch title this season, has been confirmed as Bayern's coach for next season, but Klinsmann contends that he was harshly treated by the club he served as a player between 1995 and 1997.
''Many things were chalked up to me which I could do nothing about,'' he said in an interview with RTL programme stern TV.
He added: ''That was actually the most painful thing in the matter, that you had the feeling you would have been able to finish this job. I would have been able to lead the team to the championship.''
Bayern currently lie two points behind Wolfsburg with just one game remaining. If they are to retain the Bundesliga title, Bayern must beat VfB Stuttgart and hope the Wolves lose to Werder Bremen.
The former Germany national team coach was removed after the club's senior figures revealed they and the Bayern players had lost faith in his capabilities.
But Klinsmann is unrepentant and believes that his work at the club will bear fruit, saying: ''We have laid the foundation stone for the future.''
Meanwhile Bayern midfielders Ze Roberto and Hamit Altintop will be fit to play in the final match of the season against Stuttgart after the pair returned to training.
[Soccernet]
The Bundesliga on Tuesday said they would take the original champion trophy to Wolfsburg, while a replica would be brought to Munich.
With one game to go, three teams can still win the championship.
VfL Wolfsburg have a two-point lead at the top of the table from Bayern Munich. VfB Stuttgart, who will face Bayern in Munich, are also two points behind.
The head of the Bundesliga Reinhard Rauball, accompanied by two other officials, will bring the original trophy to the northern City of Wolfsburg, where football fans are hoping for a first-ever Bundesliga title.
If Wolfsburg loses at home against Werder Bremen on Saturday the winner of the game between Bayern and Stuttgart would win the title. Former German internationals Andreas Brehme and Hansi Mueller will be in Munich to hand over a replica of the trophy in that case.
[Deutsche Presse Agentur via M&G]
