Eyes set on treble: Bayern

The celebration came before being set to return home and start preparations on defending their 2013 title treble as well.

 

While no official welcome was scheduled at Munich airport after the long night in a trendy Berlin bar, some fans were certain to show up and meet the team.

 

The rest of the German football community was left to heap praise on Munich in general and coach Pep Guardiola in particular.

 

Munich-based Sueddeutsche Zeitung bowed to Munich's dominance over the past two years when it asked Wednesday after the title-clinching 3-1 victory at Hertha Berlin: "Does this really qualify as news?

 

"News normally contains something new. You can hardly call something new that has been known for a long time. Some would argue that it was a fact even before the season. When the arguably best club on the planet signed the arguably best coach on the planet in the winter of 2013."

 

Bayern rewrote most Bundesliga records last year under Jupp Heynckes and added the German cup and Champions League for their first treble.

 

Now, instead of letting down, the former Barca coach Guardiola has made the team even better, and more silverware is in sight.

 

"Pep Guardiola achieved the impossible and mercilessly made Jupp Heynckes' treble-winning team even better, mass circulation paper Bild said in an editorial.

 

Guardiola's influence culminated on Tuesday as Bayern enjoyed 82 percent possession and had 1,078 passes against Hertha, both records just like the 19th win in a row, 10th away win in a row, 52nd game unbeaten, and of course taking the title with seven games to spare. Captain Philipp Lahm, transformed from right back to midfielder under Guardiola, completed all of his 133 passes for another milestone.

 

"Congratulations to FC Bayern, and above all to coach Pep Guardiola! He's brought the team on even further than before, and you can see his influence in terms of dominance and possession," Germany coach Joachim Loew said.

 

Munich sports director Matthias Sammer said of the coach: "Pep Guardiola fits this team, he is not only an expert, he's also a fantastic guy."

 

Guardiola, who won 14 titles including a treble during his reign at Barca between 2008 and 2012, and has already won the European Super Cup and World Club Cup with Bayern, remained modest.

 

"You always hope it goes well but I never expected it to go so well. The first four or five months were difficult. We had many problems and injuries but we then became better every day," he said.

 

"The Bundesliga is our bread and butter, you have to work every day and week for it. It is the product of hard work ... When you win by 25 points people can think it's easy. But it's not easy, especially after the last season with three titles."

 

Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer said that "Pep Guardiola has further improved us" and vowed that Munich are not finished yet, given that there are more

Bundesliga records in sight, the Champions League quarter-finals with Manchester United starting next week, and the German cup semi against second-division Kaiserslautern coming up as well.

 

"We want to go to Lisbon into the Champions League final. And we want to return to Berlin to win the (German) cup," Neuer said, and Sammer agreed, vowing: "The message is that we want to win all our remaining games as well."

 

No team has managed to win back-to-back titles in the European Cup in its current form, and another title on May 24 would also be a stepping stone for Guardiola's team to match the three successive European Cups the Bayern team captained by Franz Beckenbauer won 1974-76.

 

The 2015 final is incidently in Berlin.

 

Loew said that "Bayern have every chance of repeating the success of last year" and German football league president Reinhard Rauball named them "probably the best club team in the world."

 

Rauball is also boss of the 2011 and 2012 champions Borussia Dortmund, who lie second 25 points behind Munich - the margin at the end of the last season which could be even bigger this time around.

 

"We can see you, but we still need a telescope," Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp said, naming Munich "impressive".

 

- Sapa