UEFA Super CupChelsea vs Bayern Munich - 5 things to watch out for

Chelsea take on Bayern Munich, in Friday’s enthralling UEFA Super cup. Last season’s Champions League winners Bayern Munich, will be taking on the Europa League holders Chelsea. It gives Bayern a great opportunity to avenge, their 2012 Champion’s League Final defeat to Chelsea, at the Allianz Arena.

So here are the top 5 talking points, that surround this clash.

Jose vs Pep

Undoubtedly, this will be the most talked about topic. Rivals in the La Liga a couple of seasons ago, Jose and Pep will face off yet again. Only this time, it’s not an El Classico. With Mourinho returning back to former employers Chelsea and Guardiola now in charge at Bayern Munich, the rivalry between the two coaches, enters a brand new saga. Both managers will be looking forward to outsmart the other. We all know stats don’t matter once you step into the field. So, no matter what the past may say, only time will tell who has the last laugh.

The Midfield Battle

With both teams having extremely talented players in the middle of the park, it becomes pretty clear to see in which areas the main battles will be fought. Bayern have Javi Martinez and the ever present Bastian Schweinsteiger to hold their midfield, whereas Chelsea have the energetic Ramires and the club’s top scorer Franky Lampard.

It will definitely be an epic competition amongst these four. In attack, both teams seem to have a set of extremely talented and young stars. Chelsea can brag about the talents of Oscar, Hazard, Mata, Schurrle, De bruyne, Willian and many more. On the other hand, Bayern have a solid attacking force in Robben, Ribery and Muller. The likes of Shaqiri and more also have the potential to cause problems. With so many options on both benches, it will be interesting to see who the managers decide to start with.

Up front

While Bayern Munich have no doubts about playing Mario Mandzukic up front, Chelsea boss Mourinho is having a tough time in picking his no.1 striker. Even though Chelsea have managed to secure the services of Former Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o, it seems unlikely that he will feature against Bayern Munich.

Other than him, Chelsea have Fernando Torres, Demba Ba and Romelu Lukaku at their disposal. While Mourinho has given starts to Torres as well as Ba earlier this season, he yet has to give the promising Lukaku his first start. Mourinho has even played a false 9 formation, with Schurrle up front, thus making it very difficult to know who ‘The Special One’ will pick. With Torres, Ba and Schurrle all failing to make an impression, could this be the chance for Romelu Lukaku to shine.

Tactics

Bayern Munich, if anything, have become an even better team, since they last faced Chelsea, 1 year ago. Chelsea on the other hand have most definitely changed, their style of play. Chelsea could do nothing but defend and hold back the waves of Bayern’s attack, the last time the two teams faced off. This time around, we are likely to see more attacking football from both teams. With each team having heavy attacking options in them, it looks like we will be in for goal fest. Although, it must be said that both teams have an excellent set of defenders too. So be prepared to see a strong resistance from both defenses.

Gunning for Glory

Both teams come into this match, hoping to prove something. Bayern Munich will be playing with vengeance, as they will be desperate to avenge that heart breaking loss to Chelsea at the Allianz arena. Also, Pep Guardiola will set out to win his first trophy for his new team. Similarly, Mourinho is looking forward to winning his first trophy, in his second spell in charge. After being knocked out from the Champions League group stage last time around, Chelsea will be eager to show that they mean business and that they are not to be taken lightly. Chelsea will also be eager to lay their hands on the cup, as they missed out on the same, last season, in a humiliating, 4-1 defeat to Athletico Madrid.

Whatever might happen in tonight’s encounter, we can expect a thoroughly entertaining match with a lot of fireworks and hopefully a lot of goals.