Bayern Munich's Quest for 101 Goals - Matchday 31 Preview Comparison

Bayern Munich had a chance to equal or surpass the Bundesliga record for the most goals scored in a season, which currently stands (and has stood for over 40 years) at 101 goals scored, but it looks like that record will not get touched this season.

Who are they chasing? None other than the 1971/72 Bayern team, with the likes of Franz Beckenbauer, Uli Hoeneß, Sepp Maier, and, most importantly, Gerd Müller gracing the roster.

A few weeks ago, it was still reasonable to believe that the current Bayern team could still catch the legendary team from over 40 years ago.  But they have significantly fallen off the pace mostly due to a devastating run of injuries to key players up and down the roster. At this point, they would have to average six goals in their remaining four league matches.  With a full roster they might stand a chance, but with Pep having to call up multiple Bayern reserve players to fill out the team sheet -- coupled with already having clinched the Bundesliga title (in 1971/72, Bayern battled to the very last day to take the championship) and having much bigger fish to fry (a certain Barcelona looms midweek) -- the skeleton crew will be hard pressed to score that many.

Up next is Bayer Leverkusen, who will host Bayern on Saturday.  Their last matchup in the DFB Pokal quarterfinals saw a goalless game, which ended up being decided by penalty kicks in Bayern's favor.  Leverkusen still has something to play for, as they sit two points behind Gladbach, who hold the last guaranteed Champions League spot for next season.  Bayer would like to avoid CL qualification games, which they have already clinched, in order to be assured of the additional revenue from the European competition.

Goals Scored

Number of games remaining: 4

2014/15 - 77 goals

1971/72 - 85 goals

This season's FC Bayern is eight behind the 1971/72 team.

Matchday 31, 2015

Opponent: Bayer Leverkusen

Goals Allowed: 32

Previous meeting: 1-0 win, Home

Result: TBD

Matchday 31, 1972

Opponent: 1. FC Köln

Goals Allowed: 37

Previous meeting: 1-1 draw, Home

Result: 4-1 win, Away

The record holders from 43 years ago continued on their goal scoring tear, getting another four goals against Köln, equaling what they scored against HSV the week before.  They also didn't have to worry about European cup games, as they had already been eliminated by Glasgow Rangers a few weeks earlier.

This will be the last installment of this series, unless a miracle happens, and they hit double digits in their next game (hey, a guy can dream, right?).