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The European Supercup (held in Prague) will be highlighted by the meeting between Mourinho and Guardiola, two of the best managers in game which produced the greatest rivalry in the last decade in european football, Real Madrid vs. Barcelona. Both are managing different teams this time around, and it should be a mouth watering contest from every point of view. Chelsea and Bayern also have their feuds, with the english club winning the Uefa Champions League over the germans in dramatic fashion, at penalties, no further than one year ago.
Bayern started this season after a fantastic spell under Heynkess, and the pressure can`t be any higher on Guardiola. The bavarians are not at last year`s level, still learning to adapt to the new manager. They lost the German SuperCup against Dortmund (2-4) and they were not impressive in the league, despite the 10 points gained in 4 rounds, playing only close games with poor opposition.
Chelsea looks to be in a better spot at the moment. Mourinho`s arrival at Stamford Bridge was relished by everyone related to Chelsea, and the new signings have made an immediate impact. The portugese manager brought in some highly talented offensive players (De Bruyne, van Ginkel, Schurrle, Willian, Lukaku) and Chelsea has a fantastic attack: fast, agile, technical, enthusiastic. The Blues started the season very well, winning against Hull and Aston Villa and drawing away at Manchester United. The fact that they conceded only 1 goal and kept United scoreless is telling us that the defense is also at a high level, not unusual for Mourinho`s teams.
Team news
Chelsea has a full squad available for today, with the exception of David Luiz, which is highly questionable. Important missing, but Cahill and Terry looked very solid together at the back so far. Bayern has more problems, which could actually become dramatic if Schweinsteiger and Martinez (both doubtful) will not be fit to play. Thiago Alcantara and Badstuber are definitely out. The germans could miss their best three central midfielders, which would be a disaster, but at least one of Schweinsteiger and Martinez should feature today.
Chelsea: Cech – Ivanovic, Terry, Cahill, Cole – Essien (Lampard), Ramires – Hazard, Oscar, Mata – Torres (Lukaku)
Bayern: Neuer – Alaba, Dante, Van Buyten (Boateng), Lahm – Kroos, Schweinsteiger – Robben, Gotze (Muller), Ribery – Mandzukic
Mourinho started the mind-games by stating that Bayern is not as good as last season, but the current start of the season showed that he is not far away from the truth. Shaky game from them in the league, the offense is not producing like before, the defense was fragile against fast attackers.
Expect a balanced game, with the teams being at a similar level at the moment. The germans were the best team in the world last season and they have a fantastic squad, but Chelsea look more cohesive and confident, and that just may be enough to snatch the trophy from Bayern. It is obvious that the bavarians are still not at their best tactical level, and Mourinho is the perfect man to take advantage of that. Bayern should keep the ball, but Chelsea`s devastating young attack can punish them on the counters, especially with the central defense being the weak spot for the european champions. The Blues have fantastic options on the bench if things don`t go their way, so that is also an advantage for them. All these arguments seem to actually give Chelsea the edge, and my personal opinion is that they will win this. One thing is for sure though, value lies on Chelsea. I`ll take them not to lose with both hands at this price.
Pick: Chelsea +0,5
Odds: 2.10 @ William Hill
Stake: 10
Possible profit: 11
Event date: 30 August
