Bayern Munich hoping their name is on the cup

By Raphael Honigstein German football expert
"A terrible week," was how Bayern Munich defender Holger Badstuber described the past few days on Saturday.
For a club which regards winning trophies as the be-all and end-all, losing out on the German championship at the beginning of April for a second year running was a traumatic event - the record title winners (22) have been accustomed to dominating the Bundesliga at least every other year since 1997.
They engage in a 2 leg battle semi final matchs with Madrid in  Allianz Arena to night, what a cracker it would be. 
Bayern Munich hope their incredible home record keeps as they host Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final
Date: Tuesday 17th April 2012
Venue: Allianz Arena
Capacity: 69,000
Kick Off: 17.45
Probable Line Ups:
Bayern Munich: Neuer; Lahm, Badstuber, Boateng, Gustavo; Robben, Muller, Schweinsteiger, Kroos, Ribery; Gomez.
Real Madrid: Casillas; Arbeola, Ramos, Pepe, Coentrao; Alonso, Khedira; Ozil, Ronaldo, Kaka; Benzema
Match Preview
Bayern Munich will welcome back Phillip Lahm, Franck Ribery and Mario Gomez after the trio were rested in the league. Daniel Van Buyten and Breno are both sidelined although Bastian Schweinstegier is available are serving his one match suspension. Real Madrid also rested players in their last game so Karim Benzema, Kaka and Angel Di Maria are likely to start.
Real Madrid enter the game as favourites but their record at the Allianz Arena is not a strong one. They have never won there (losing 8, drawing 1) and have only beaten Bayern Munich 6 times in 18 meetings. Infact their record in Germany reads poor with 1 win in 22 games.
Not only are Madrid bad in Germany but Bayern Munich are nothing short of excellent there. They have won all home games in the Champions League this season and have sealed 12 wins from their last 13 home European games.
They also boast the competition’s second top goal scorer, Mario Gomez, who has netted 12 times in 11 matches. Cristiano Ronaldo is Real Madrid’s highest European scorer with a tally of 8 while Benzema has 7.
Madrid will have one eye on the ‘El Clasico’ that could define their title challenge in La Liga although manager Jose Mourinho insists focus is purely on Bayern Munich. Victory for Madrid would ensure a mouth-watering final regardless of the opposition as Mourinho could be reunited in a game with former club Chelsea or participate in the biggest of all ‘El Clasico’s ‘.
Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes will want to prove a point after being shown the door when manager of Real Madrid while star player Arjen Robben was also seemed surplus to requirements while a Madrid player and will want to show his former employers why their were wrong to think that.
Madrid and Munich have both cruised through the knockout stages (despite the latter losing against Basel in the first leg) but neither can expect an easy game here.