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Petkovic: AC Milan should fear Lazio
Mar 2, 2013 9:55:00 AM
The 49-year-old is looking forward to Saturday evening's encounter at San Siro and is confident that his side can hold their own
| Bet: | Returns: | Roma £26.25 | Draw £33.00 | Lazio £28.75 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Roma £25.00 | Draw £32.00 | Lazio £28.80 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Roma £26.00 | Draw £32.50 | Lazio £27.50 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Roma £25.00 | Draw £33.00 | Lazio £28.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | Roma £23.70 | Draw £34.00 | Lazio £28.70 |
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The Stadio Olimpico side currently sit third in the league table, holding a two-point lead over Milan, and Petkovic has stressed that Lazio should be respected following their good performances so far this campaign.
"Milan are a team to fear but maybe they should fear us as well," Petkovic said at the pre-match press conference.
"It will be a very important game and we will try to win it.
"The table says that we are ahead of Milan, and we probably deserve to be two points ahead of them. We have to respect them, though, especially after their win against Barcelona."
Lazio recorded a 3-2 win over Milan in Rome earlier this season.
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Champions League final - LIVE!
German giants Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will battle it out at Wembley for European glory. Get involved by sending us your thoughts via Twitter or Facebook! Hosted by Mark Doyle.
5:07 PM BST
Klopp, of course, is the new darling of the football media. It’s pretty damn impossible not to love a man who speaks so passionately - and amusingly - about the game. This week alone he admitted that so distraught was he by the news of Gotze’s imminent departure for Bayern, whom he views as the villain in a James Bond movie, that he had to cancel plans with his wife to attend a movie premiere because he didn’t want to have to talk to anyone. Seriously, how could any real football fan not be a 'Klopptomist'?!
5:03 PM BST
We’re still awaiting the confirmed line-ups but if you’re looking for the likely starting 11s, let me point you in the direction of our match preview. Also, if you want an excellent and entertaining analysis of tonight’s fascinating final, well, how does a James Richardson-hosted debate involving Jonathan Wilson and Paulo Sousa tickle your fancy? The prince of puns, a true titan of tactical thinking and a two-time Champions League winner - a veritable dream team, I think you'll agree.
4:59 PM BST
The injury-enforced absence of Dortmund’s Bayern-bound playmaker, Gotze, is of course the principal talking point in terms of team news. The 20-year-old’s unavailability is clearly a hammer blow for die Schwarzgelben, but, as team-mate Kevin Grosskreutz pointed out this week, Dortmund destroyed Bayern in last year’s DFB Pokal final without Gotze.
4:54 PM BST
But what do the fans think? Well, yesterday Goal’s roving reporter Kris Voakes went along to the Uefa Champions Festival, which is being staged at the Olympic Park in Stretford, and he spoke with supporters from both sides.
Johannes, Munich, told Goal: "We haven't lost to Dortmund this season, and though we lost two finals [in 2010 and 2012], we are hoping the third time is a charm.
"Last year the English stole our trophy," interrupted his friend Benjamin, "but we are going to take in back to Munich where it belongs."
But Dortmund fan Nicolas says the loss of Mario Gotze to injury is not too much of a concern for Jurgen Klopp's side: “We have Marco Reus and Robert Lewandowski, and yes, we will be fine without Gotze. We will win 2-0.”
Johannes, Munich, told Goal: "We haven't lost to Dortmund this season, and though we lost two finals [in 2010 and 2012], we are hoping the third time is a charm.
"Last year the English stole our trophy," interrupted his friend Benjamin, "but we are going to take in back to Munich where it belongs."
But Dortmund fan Nicolas says the loss of Mario Gotze to injury is not too much of a concern for Jurgen Klopp's side: “We have Marco Reus and Robert Lewandowski, and yes, we will be fine without Gotze. We will win 2-0.”
4:44 PM BST
However, Dortmund simply cannot be discounted. They relish the role of underdogs and are not in the least bit afraid of their illustrious rivals, having now gone six Bundesliga games without defeat against die Roten. The last time these two met in a final, in last season’s DFB Pokal, Dortmund ran out 5-2 winners. As coach Jurgen Klopp pointed out this week: “We’re not the best team in the world, but we can beat the best team in the world."
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