B. Munich chase fifth double against Schalke

Bayern Munich are firm favourites to add the German Cup to their Bundesliga title in the final yesterday although rivals Schalke 04 are the only side to have beaten them home and away this season.

A Bayern victory, for their fifth league and cup double, would be a ringing endorsement for coach Felix Magath in his first season at the club, matching the feat of Croatian Branko Zebec who took over at Bayern for the 1968-69 season.

There are clear parallels 36 years on. Zebec's team also beat Schalke in the final and Magath also played under Zebec at Hamburg and has a similar belief in firm discipline.

The present Bayern coach, who scored the winning goal in Hamburg's 1983 European Cup triumph over Juventus, has however never won the German Cup as player or coach. His club, though, have defeated Schalke in five out of six Cup ties to date.

Bayern have won their last nine matches and lost just five times overall on the way to a commanding 14-point lead in the Bundesliga, yet two of those were 1-0 defeats to Schalke.

"Schalke surely can't beat us three times in a year. It's unthinkable," said Bayern's director of football Uli Hoeness.

Schalke's stuttering end of season form, in which they lost five of their last nine matches after beating Bayern, gifted their rivals the title. Indeed, they only secured second spot, and with it automatic Champions League qualification.

"It seems everyone thinks that Bayern will clearly win on Saturday, so we don't need to go. I'll have a talk with the team and see if they'd rather just watch the match here," said Schalke trainer Ralf Rangnick.