- FC Bayern Munchen meets Manchester United on Thursday
- Boca Juniors and AC Milan play in small finale
- Wayne Rooney and Thomas Muller selected as most valuable players
The soccer fans in Munich and in front of the TV sets can look forward to an absolute dream finale in the Audi Cup: On Thursday night at 8:45 pm (live on ZDF) FC Bayern Munchen will meet the team of Manchester United at the sold-out Allianz Arena. Prior to that game, Boca Juniors will play against AC Milan for third place.
La Ola at the Allianz Arena: The spectators at the nearly sold-out Munich stadium witnessed a stirring kickoff to the sporting highlight of the 100th anniversary celebrations of Audi – and an FC Bayern Munchen squad that presented itself in tremendous shape right in time for the start to the season: With a score of 4:1 the team of Louis van Gaal with goals scored by Thomas Muller (12th minute), Bastian Schweinsteiger (79th), Saer Sene (89th) and Muller again (90th) commandingly defeated AC Milan and is now expecting the squad of Sir Alex Ferguson.
‘For the fans of course this is the perfect finale,’ said Louis van Gaal, who – like new signing Mario Gomez – experienced his debut at the Allianz Arena. ‘A great atmosphere that further boosts our enthusiasm about the upcoming season,’ he added. It was a perfect evening, as well, for the double goal scorer Thomas Muller: A judging panel including, among others, the CEO of the Volkswagen Group Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Audi CEO Rupert Stadler and DFB Sports Director Matthias Sammer, selected him as the game’s most valuable player.
In the first semi-final of the evening Wayne Rooney from Manchester United, who defeated Boca Juniors with a score of 2:1, secured this unofficial title. After a strong first half-time of the Britons and their 2:0-lead, the Argentinians came back, dominated the game and scored the goal that left their opponents only one down. Still, Alfio Basile’s squad had to settle for the game for third place against AC Milan that kicks off tomorrow at 6:30 pm.
The final day at the Allianz Arena is totally sold out. Nevertheless, fans will have the chance to watch the soccer festival marked by the four rings: ZDF will air live coverage from Munich starting at 7:25 pm, first covering the second half-time of the game for third place, followed by full-length coverage of the finale. Summaries of all games and current reports about the Audi Cup can also be watched on the internet at www.audi.tv
