Though Bayern Munich players knew nothing about Guangzhou Evergrande before the semi-final at Club World Cup, their head coach Pep Guardiola said he knew Chinese club's key men and was surprised by their qualities.
Guangzhou, the first-ever Chinese side to have won the Asian Champions league, will challenge the European Champions league winner at Agadir Stadium here Tuesday, reports Xinhua.
Jerome Boateng and Toni Kroos, who attended the pre-match conference, both said they knew nothing about Marcello lippi's side which they never played against before. "We will watch the match video tonight or tomorrow morning with the coach. Then we will know them better," said Boateng.
Guardiola, who followed Bayern's duo to face the media, said he tried to watch "as many matches as possible" in the last two or three days to know the Chinese club.
The 42-year-old said he also seek some information from his friends in training in Chinese leagues. "I was surprised to find they have such good quality players like Conca, Muriqui, Elkeson. They are top-level ones," said Guardiola, referring to the South American trio of the opponent.
"And also Gao lin. They pass well and are quick in the front. And they have experienced Zheng Zhi, who was a Celtic player and might play in England before."
Besides these key players, Guardiola was cautious about the tactics of his counterpart lippi, especially when Bayen was listed as the favourite to win the title.
"I think, people normally think Bayern is favourite before the match. But against an Italian coach that will change, especially when they are not regarded as favourites, they are very dangerous in that moment."
Bale to miss Madrid's Copa del Rey match
Madrid: Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale will miss Wednesday's Copa del Rey match after hurting his leg in practice.
Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti says Bale received "a knock on his thigh and won't be available" for the match against third-division club Xativa Olimpic. The two teams drew 0-0 in the first leg.
Ancelotti says Bale "didn't play well" in Madrid's 2-2 draw at Osasuna in the Spanish league on Saturday, but that he has "complete confidence" in the Welshman.
Madrid will also be without defender Sergio Ramos. Ancelotti says he won't start Cristiano Ronaldo or Karim Benzema, once again relying on reserve players who failed to score against Olimpic in the opening leg.
Gattuso targeted in Italian fixing inquiry
Rome: Former AC Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso, one of the key players in Italy's World Cup-winning team in 2006, was placed under investigation for match-fixing on Tuesday as a widening inquiry into football corruption targeted Milan's last title campaign.
Four others were arrested in an early morning police sweep.
Cremona prosecutor Roberto Di Martino, who has been leading the last Bet operation for three years, told The Associated Press that Gattuso and retired Milan and lazio player Cristian Brocchi were allegedly part of a ring that fixed Serie A and other Italian matches at the end of the 2010-11 season.
"About 30 matches, a good part of them involving Serie A, are under investigation," Di Martino told the AP.
The four people arrested were Salvatore Spadaro, Francesco Bazzani, Cosimo Rinci and Fabio Quadri. Each of them allegedly helped connect fixers to players, Di Martino said of the case that has seen more than 50 people arrested since mid-2011.
Di Martino said a couple of the people arrested Tuesday met as recently as this year, suggesting matches continue to be fixed.
"We're seeing clear facts that despite the arrests and investigations a good part of these people continue to do what they did before," Di Martino said later in a news conference, lamenting that past arrests have not made much of an impact.
"There certainly were not big reactions in Italy, considering that things continue to go on like before," the prosecutor added.
Gattuso and Brocchi face charges of criminal association with the aim of fraud and sports fraud, and had their homes searched. About 20 other people were also placed under investigation.