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Talk about blast from the past! Bayern Munich and Ingolstadt, rivals in the infant football leagues in Germany, will be facing each other for just the second time in the last 50 years.
This will be the biggest clash between the two adversaries in history, part of Ingolstadt's introduction to the German top flight. These two teams have very different history, but both are key to Bavaria becoming a top footballing province in Germany.
Both clubs are grasping their spots in the Bundesliga, Bayern trying to fend off rivals Dortmund at the top and Ingolstadt clutching their mid table rung to avoid falling into the relegation zone. Bayern's strategy will have to be more aggressive than Ingolstadt, but that may work into the Schanzer's favor. This is a bavarian derby few alive have ever seen, though it may be more one-sided than some other derby's Bayern are taking part in this season.
The Match
Location: Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany
Referees
Head: Michael Weiner
FC Bayern: 34 W, 6 D, 5 L – 80 YC, 1 Y/R, 1 RC
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The Fixture
Form
FC Bayern: WLWWW
Ingolstadt: DLWDD
Records
DFB Pokal: 1 W, 0 D, 0 L
Largest Victory: 6-0 (DFB Pokal: October 26, 2011, Munich)
The Squad
The hobble towards the winter break continues, and Bayern may be happier than anyone the reserve season is in its winter break. Franck Ribery and Medhi Benatia are the latest casualties to the injury bug, leaving Pep Guardiola with just enough pieces to fill a potent team.
Without the take-on wizards Bayern have succeeded with this season, two-touch football might be the right answer. Bayern executed that pretty well against Dinamo Zagreb, impressive for a team with not a lot of experience with one-another. The one problem the combination play is it drags Robert Lewandowski away from goal, which limits the chances he has in the box.
Ingolstadt may be a team Bayern can also man-up defensively, allowing Philipp Lahm to slide in to midfield in order to help keep possession. Mönchengladbach did an excellent job catching Bayern's center backs unawares though, and Guardiola is going to make the adjustments tactically to ensure that does not happen again. The current collection of midfielders track back pretty well too, which will make an error or two from Jerome Boateng and Javi Martinez a little easier to swallow.
Bayern were embarrassed last week against Gladbach, but they don't get embarrassed at home too often. A home fixture against a local rival is just what Bayern need to get themselves back on track.
Projected Lineup (4-1-4-1):
Robert Lewandowski
Kingsley Coman – Arturo Vidal – Joshua Kimmich – Thomas Müller
Xabi Alonso
Rafinha – Jerome Boateng – Javi Martínez – Philipp Lahm
Manuel Neuer
Bench: Sven Ulreich, Holger Badstuber, Jan Kirchhoff, Sebastian Rode, Thiago Alcântara, Niklas Dorsch, Julian Green
Out/Suspended: David Alaba (ankle), Medhi Benatia (thigh), Juan Bernat (groin), Douglas Costa (thigh), Franck Ribéry (muscle injury), Arjen Robben (muscle issues),
The Opponent
Uncanny, how Ingolstadt have found their way into mid table despite being the only club in the Bundesliga that is scoring less than a goal a game. The newly promoted club is very well organized though, and Ralph Hasenhüttl has gotten a lot out of the collection of players he has.
The only issue is when Ingolstadt's defense opens up, goals tend to poor in. Borussia Dortmund showed that at the beginning of the season, and Hannover were able to provide an overwhelming attacking performance as well. Both of those teams managed to do so on the break though, something Ingolstadt may be able to prevent in Allianz Arena.
Without a real goal scorer, Ingolstadt should continue to struggle against the league's best. None of their forwards are good at creating space, and their decision making in the final third is sometimes too slow to take advantage of opportunities. Many goals have come from set pieces though, the magisterial Marvin Matip providing a spectacle or two.
This will be just the second time Ingolstadt ventures down the road to the Allianz. The first trip did not go so well though, and this one might not be very fun either.
Projected Lineup (4-3-3):
Mathew Leckie – Lukas Hinterseer – Stefan Lex
Roger – Romain Bregerie – Pascal Groß
Robert Bauer – Benjamin Hübner – Marvin Matip – Tobias Levels
Ramazan Özcan
Bench: Örjan Nyland, Danny Da Costa, Max Christiansen, Almog Cohen, Stefan Wannenwetsch, Moritz Hartmann, Tomáš Pekhart
Out/Suspended: Danilo, Konstantin Engel (knee), Alfredo Morales (yellow card suspension)
The Outcome
Ingolstadt have done well to keep goals out of their net, but their luck soon may be running out. Bayern will have to take their chances early and often though, for if Ingolstadt get the confidence at a unit, it may be hard to find an opener. With the way Lewandowski and Thomas Müller have paired together this season, the match may get out of hand pretty quickly.
Projected Score: Bayern Munich (4-0) Ingolstadt
The Other Action
Bundesliga
1. FSV Mainz 05 vs. VfB Stuttgart (Friday, 2:30 PM ET)
VfL Wolfsburg vs. Hamburger SV (Saturday, 9:30 AM ET)
SV Werder Bremen vs. 1. FC Köln (Saturday, 9:30 AM ET)
Hoffenheim vs. Hannover (Saturday, 9:30 AM ET)
Bayer Leverkusen vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach (Saturday, 12:30 PM ET)
Augsburg vs. Schalke 04 (Sunday, 9:30 AM ET)
Borussia Dortmund vs. Eintracht Frankfurt (Sunday, 11:30 AM ET)
DFB-Pokal Opponent
SV Darmstadt 98 vs. Hertha Berlin (Saturday, 9:30 AM ET)
The Table
| Team | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts. | |
 |
Bayern Munich | 13 | 1 | 1 | 43 | 8 | +35 | 40 |
 |
Borussia Dortmund | 11 | 2 | 2 | 42 | 20 | +22 | 35 |
 |
Borussia Mönchengaldbach | 8 | 2 | 5 | 31 | 23 | +8 | 26 |
 |
Hertha Berliner SC | 8 | 2 | 5 | 20 | 18 | +2 | 26 |
 |
VfL Wolfsburg | 7 | 4 | 4 | 24 | 17 | +7 | 25 |
 |
FC Schalke 04 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 24 |
 |
1. FSV Mainz 05 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 23 | 21 | +2 | 23 |
 |
Bayer 04 Leverkusen | 6 | 3 | 6 | 19 | 20 | -1 | 21 |
 |
Hamburger SV | 6 | 3 | 6 | 18 | 21 | -3 | 21 |
 |
1. FC Köln | 5 | 5 | 5 | 15 | 19 | -4 | 20 |
 |
FC Ingolstadt 04 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 15 | -4 | 20 |
 |
SV Darmstadt 98 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 19 | -4 | 18 |
 |
Eintracht Frankfurt | 3 | 5 | 7 | 18 | 23 | -5 | 14 |
 |
Hannover 96 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 18 | 27 | -9 | 14 |
 |
SV Werder Bremen | 4 | 2 | 9 | 15 | 29 | -14 | 14 |
 |
FC Augsburg | 3 | 4 | 8 | 18 | 25 | -7 | 13 |
 |
VfB Stuttgart | 3 | 2 | 10 | 19 | 36 | -17 | 11 |
 |
TSG 1899 Hoffenheim | 1 | 7 | 7 | 16 | 24 | -8 | 10 |