Daily Schmankerl: Müller on verge of milestone; PSV players fighting over Messi; Bailey advised to avoid Chelsea; and MORE!

Thomas Müller could make his 100th UCL appearance against Benfica (AZ)

Thomas Müller is on verge of a nice career milestone if he takes the pitch against Benfica. The match would mark Müller’s 100th Champions League appearance, which would place him only behind Philipp Lahm (112) and Oliver Kahn (103) at Bayern Munich.

In terms of where Müller ranks overall, he’s got a long way to go to catch the leaders.

FC Porto’s Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas leads the standings with 167 appearances ahead of Juventus’s Cristiano Ronaldo (153).

Müller has 42 goals and 20 assists over the course of his UCL career.

Also, for kicks, here is a look at Bayern exiting their airplane looking like a private security firm tasked with protecting a foreign dignitary on the run from a team of global assassins.

Leon Bailey discouraged from making Chelsea move (ReadChelsea.com)

Bayer Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey has been long rumored to be looking for greener pastures (despite his recent contract extension). At least one former Premier League player thinks Bailey should avoid Chelsea and look in another direction for the betterment of his own career.

Former West Ham goalkeeper Shaka Hislop would advise Bailey to slow his roll a bit when it comes to making a move to Stamford Bridge any time in the near-future.

I think Hazard is going to be there for a while. He’s playing well, I think he’s enjoying his football. I felt that if Hazard was leaving Chelsea and soon, it would have been the summer just gone. It hasn’t happened. Leon Bailey is enjoying life in Germany and let that continue. There’s no rush to get to Chelsea so you can say that Eden Hazard is your team-mate. If you aren’t playing, you aren’t learning or growing in the game.

Bailey seems like he’s got one foot out the door with Die Werkself and his value is likely not going to spike much more. It will be interesting to see if Leverkusen decides to sell the young talent; which would represent a step back if the club’s goal is to contend with Bayern in the Bundesliga.

ICYMI: The FC Bayern Frauen stomped Bayer Leverkusen 10-1 (@FCBfrauen)

The Bayern ladies destroyed Leverkusen over the weekend 10-1! If you want to check out all 10 goals, take a look at the tweet below. CAPTAIN OBVIOUS ALERT: It was a really impressive showing for the Frauen!

Shooting festival in Leverkusen! ⚽️ #FCBayernTVlive with the highlights of the furious 10:1 league start of the #FCBFrauen. #MiaSanMia

PSV Eindhoven players can fight for the right to swap jerseys with Leo Messi (ESPN)

The Champions League is tremendous for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that you get to see some match-ups that would never happen otherwise. FC Barcelona vs. PSV Eindhoven is one example of that, and the excitement is not lost on the players.

Well, at least not for PSV anyway. PSV coach and former Bayern Munich captain Mark van Bommel is going to let his players battle it our for the right to swap jerseys with Lionel Messi.

In football we have seen fights between opponents, between fans and even sometimes between disgruntled teammates. The full-time whistle of PSV’s game at Camp Nou could result in a different kind of “fight” altogether. PSV coach and former Netherlands and Bayern Munich captain Mark van Bommel has given his players the green light to “fight for Messi’s shirt” at full-time.

“If tomorrow we get a good result I don’t care if they fight for Messi’s shirt”, said the 41-year-old coach ahead of Tuesday’s match with the Spanish champions. Van Bommel, knowing that some of his players likely will be star struck, also emphasized that his players need to be “professionals” about it and not ask Messi for his shirt at half-time, like others have done in the past.

ICYMI: Julian Draxler scores on a phenomenal “double header” (@Destaquito2)

Julian Draxler is in a constant battle for field time at Paris Saint-Germain, but this kind of effort might help his cause.

A call for fan groups (BavarianFootballWorks.com)

We are trying something here at the Daily Schmankerl and need YOUR help. If you read my man Tommy Adams’ piece about his experience with the FCBNYC Fan Club (if you haven’t, SHAME ON YOU!), you could see how great the event was. So we want to highlight some of these wonderful groups that are out there globally and this is what we need from you:

• Name of the group
• Location
• Year founded
• Leadership (if you have people are kind of running the show)
• Meeting place
• Social media handles
• Pictures

We have 7 clubs on board so far. I’d LOVE to be able to feature a different fan group every week this season. Maybe we can do it, maybe not...but only YOU can help decide the fate of this idea. Send your info to: barrelsportsblog@gmail.com.