Bayern Munich – Real Madrid Betting: Back Guardiola's men to stumble at the in the Audi Cup final

These two sides have plenty of recent history, yet the price for Rafa Benitez’s men not to lose at the Allianz Arena is simply too good to turn down


A pre-season friendly this may be, but Bayern Munich against Real Madrid boasts enough sub-plots to make it a fascinating encounter.

First and foremost is the small matter of the last time these two sides met at the Allianz Arena in April of last year, when Madrid produced a staggering performance to win 4-0 and book their place in the Champions League final.

Nothing will make up for that result, but a comprehensive win for Bayern will provide a modicum of satisfaction if not revenge for the Bundesliga champions and their manager.

For Madrid fans, getting one over on Bayern boss Pep Guardiola – who spent four years in charge of Barcelona – would bring great satisfaction.

Finally there is the reunion with Xabi Alonso, the former Madrid midfielder who swapped the Bernabeu for the Allianz last summer and who is likely to face his former side for the first time since leaving.

The elements are there to make this a supremely interesting game, whilst not forgetting that these are two of the biggest and best sides in the world; the most successful teams in the history of their respective countries. bet365 make Bayern the favourites at evens (2.00) with Madrid offered at 5/2 (3.50) and the draw available at 13/5 (3.80).

Home advantage will play a role of course, but it is perhaps surprising to find the Bavarians as such clear favourites given their results in pre-season so far. While they looked excellent against Milan, other performances have not been as convincing, with a strong Bayern side drawing 0-0 with Guangzhou Evergrande.

Furthermore, their loss on penalties to Wolfsburg in Saturday’s German Super Cup, showed Bayern to be a little wasteful in the final third, as they failed to kill off the game when they were in control.

Madrid, meanwhile, have been impressive and occasionally spectacular this summer, conceding just one goal in 450 minutes of football. Benitez has added a solidity to them which is visible right throughout the side, and this defensive rigour has spawned some impressive results.

To this end, backing Real Madrid or Draw in the double chance market at 5/6 (1.83) surely has to be of interest to serious punters, with Los Blancos not losing any match in pre-season in 90 minutes. Naturally Bayern will provide a stern test, yet this is a great price for Real Madrid not to lose a game almost irrespective of opponents.