Showdown at the Bernabeu

The moment we've been waiting for since the group stages commenced in in mid-September is now upon us. Tomorrow two teams will fight for their own trebles. In Germany, Bayern Munich has already captured the Bundesliga and the DFB Pokal, while their Italian opponents Internazionale Milan have seized their Serie A scudetto and the Copa Italia.

Saturday's premier European final has more plot lines than The Lord of Rings. The Bavarian's coach, Louis Van Gaal, was mentor to the Italian's self-proclaimed Special One--Jose Mourinho. (Mourinho has yet to claim his crown yet.)

Both finalists knocked out one of last year's finalists. Bayern came from behind at Old Trafford to knock out Manchester United in the quarterfinals; Inter parked the bus at Camp Nou and staved off attack after attack from holders Barcelona in the semifinals.

Both teams are extremely disciplined when it comes to getting men behind the ball on defense. Between them they boast experienced defenders, loads of talent in the midfield, and tricky, pacey strikers, all to be expected for finalists of the world's most elite club tournament.

Many people expect Bayern to be unable to break down Inter's stalwart defending, the reasoning being that if Barca couldn't with their delectable passing, no one could. However, Bayern posses a threat that Barcelona's front line of Pedro, Bojan, and Messi doesn't have: aerial ability. So if Inter is willing to give up the flanks in order to protect the middle, Lahm, Altintop, and Robben will be ready and willing to whip balls into the middle for Olic, Schweinsteiger or Mueller to head on to goal. If Inter tries to take away the wings, they expose themselves and the Bavarian midfield trio is more than capable of creating chances.

Ribery may be out with red card suspension and busy looking for underage hookers, but Inter always must be wary of Robben doing this or this.

At the other end of the pitch, Baryern will need to limit the defensive mistakes such as against Man United, and will need Van Bommel to keep tabs on his Dutch counterpart Sneijder and limit his influence on the game.

All said and done, this should be a close one, and I say Bayern wins 2-1.

And if they go to penalties, we know who will win that. Those typical Germans.

Kickoff is at 11.45 PST on FOX. That's right, mainstream FOX is showing the Champions League. And who said soccer would never become popular in the states.

Lyon (FRA) v Bayern Munich (GER)

4/21/10 Fussball Arena, Munich

4/27/10 Stade de Gerland, Lyon

When the current edition of the Champions League started back in August, you would have been a fool to bet on these two teams still being in it at this stage. An extended run in the Champions League looked highly unlikely for a team that had sold top scorer Karim Benzema to Real Madrid. And Bayern coach Louis Van Gaal was at one time four games from the sack after a poor run of form before Christmas. But it is by no mean a fluke that these two are here still in it. Despite finishing second in their group to Bordeaux, Bayern had made their threat known with a 4-1 thrashing of Juventus in Turin on the last day of the group stage. And Lyon's path to the semis includes a 2-1 win at Anfield in the group stage and a 2-1 aggregate win over Real Madrid (and old boy Benzema) in the round of 16.

Bayern's attack has been bolstered by the summer signing of Arjen Robben, who has chipped in with a career best 19 goals in all competitions this season. The front three of Robben, Ribery, and Olic, with Gomez coming off the bench, has the pace and skill to trouble any back four. And with the revelation of Bastien Schweinsteigger as a holding midfielder partnered by the experienced Mark Van Bommel, Bayern can say they have the advantage in the middle third of the park as well. The problem for Bayern has been in keeping the goals out. Both Man U and Fiorentina put four past Hans Jorg Butt over their respective ties. Martin Demichellis has played horridly, and was directly at fault for at least three of Man U's goals in that tie, including this horrible first minute sequence in the first leg in which he needlessly fouled Nani in the corner before losing his mark (a certain Wayne Rooney) and allowing him to walk in unchecked to volley into the net. Demichellis was embarrassed once again in the second leg, Antonio Valencia juggling around him as if he weren't there before squaring for Nani's second goal of the game.

Lyon's recent form has been enviable of late, winning four and drawing one of their last five in Ligue 1. While Lyon's attacking talents of Lisandro Lopez and Pjanic usually grab the headlines, it is their steel in the defensive third that sets the platform for the attackers. In front of the increasingly impressive shot stopper Hugo Loris sits center back Cris, whose bald-headed, no-nonsense defending evokes memories of Jaap Stam. Real Madrid could only manage one goal against Lyon over the two legs of their round of 16 tie. And a win and draw versus Liverpool in the group stages shows that Lyon can box with the best of them. With Bayern's wealth in attacking options, Cris, Loris, and French international Jeremy Toulalan, who looks set to partner Cris in central defense, will have to be on top form to advance to the final.

Look for Lyon manager Claude Puel to play ultra conservative, especially in the first leg away from home. Just as they did in the second leg against Bordeaux, they will look to frustrate their more attack-minded opponents with a solid defensive shape, getting nine or ten men behind the ball at all times. And although the focus will be on defense, Lisandro Lopez, Lyon's replacement for Benzema, can certainly produce the goods. A 90th minute goal against Liverpool sent Lyon into the knockout stages, and he had two goals in the first leg 3-1 victory over Bordeaux.

Although Lyon are extremely well organised and can attack or shut the game down when they please, I see Bayern just having the edge. The atmosphere at the Fussball Arena will be absolutely rocking, with the giant club searching their first Champions League final appearance since 2001. You have to feel that the win over Man U has finally exorcised the demons of the 1999 final, and truthfully, Bayern were the better side for the majority of both matches, despite allowing some awfully cheap goals (ahem!, Demechellis). An interesting side note will be how the 800 km minibus ride (their plane is still grounded due to the volcanic ash cloud) to Munich will affect the legs of the Lyon players. They might just be wishing they had signed Adrian Mutu...

Prediction: 3-3 Bayern through on away goals