Die Wochen Der Wahrheit: The Final Weeks of Candor

Here's a look into the final stage of the season, and an evaluation of Bayern Munich's chances in each of the three competitions.

The Bundesliga: This is a must win for Bayern. A team that claims to be one of the top clubs in Europe, and hopes to attract the signatures of further stars can't afford to go another season without being league champions. The games remaining on Bayern's menu this season include: Stuttgart at home, Schalke away, Leverkusen away, Hannover at home, Borussia Mönchengladbach away, Bochum at home, and Hertha Berlin away.

It is essential for Bayern to clinch the games against the teams at the lower end of the table, but Louis Van Gaal and the staff at Bayern are well seasoned, and will have the poise to collect all the points in those games at this stage of the competition. The tricky ones to navigate will be Stuttgart, Schalke, and Leverkusen. It would be naive to claim Bayern going to the end of a season undefeated, so a loss against one of these teams is possible—most likely, Schalke. This may appear to complicate things for the boys in red since Schalke only lie one point behind Bayern, and Leverkusen only three, but each of the other two teams involved in the race for the title also have lofty schedules ahead of them. Schalke will be facing Leverkusen, Bayern, and Bremen before the conclusion of the season, and Leverkusen, of course, have Schalke, Bayern, and Stuttgart. It is probable that both these teams will leave some points lying, and assuming Bayern can limit their remaining record to only one or two losses, I think they stand to win the league this season.

The Pokal: Bayern face Werder Bremen in the finals of the DFB Pokal.  They should be able to see off Bremen, as Thomas Schaaf's men have had a turbulent season, and have underacheived fifth in the league currently.  It certainly won't be an easy game, but this definitely isn't the first final Bayern have ever been in, and they should be able to secure a victory in this competition.

The Champions League: The European competition presents a whole different challenge to Bayern Munich. They've reached the quarterfinals, and face Manchester United March 30th at home, and April 7th at Old Trafford. As much as it pains me to say it, I can't see Bayern advancing in this competition. Man U have an impressive side, and are coming off a 7-2 aggregate debasement of AC Milan in their previous Champions League matchup, which was topped off by a 4-0 victory at home. The most likely source of problems will come from Wayne Rooney, and the current condition of the Bayern defense. So, unless Van Buyten and his crew have some sort of awakening in the next few weeks, Sir Alex Ferguson will most likely continue his march towards Madrid.

There is something to be said that Bayern Munich are only one of three teams in Europe currently involved in all three of their competitions, next to Inter Milan and Girondins Bordeaux. However, this feel-good claim won't do anyone any good unless they capitalize in these competitions—the Bundesliga being the most important. Bayern Munich stand a realistic chance of winning two of their three competitions, and maybe with some sort of miracle from above, can make a statement in the third, but on the other hand, also stand to come out empty-handed. That being said, assuming Bayern dig deep, and play the way they are capable of, I think they have a realistic shot of coming away with two titles this season.