Despite completing a hat-trick of Bundesliga titles only last weekend, Bayern Munich proved to be erratic in form as they succumbed to a defeat at the hands of Borussia Dortmund, thereby failing to register their name in the DFB Pokal final.
In the wake of a dramatic penalty shoot-out at the Allianz Arena, Sebastian Kehl quipped that Bayern Munich should practice penalties and not complain. Pep Guardiola did not seem impressed with the comments of the former German international as he hit back with reference to the difference in points between them whilst also telling him to shut up.
a If you [Sebastian Kehl] have a 35-point deficit in the league, it is better to shut up,” the Catalan told reporters on Friday.
The former Barcelona manager stood by his complaints as he stated that his side were denied a clear penalty when Marcel Schmelzer handled the ball in the penalty area. He also tried to preach respect to the Borussia Dortmund midfielder as he announced that he had never disrespected his opponents, no matter what the result.
“I have never sought to blame others when we lost to Dortmund even though this time I had two good reasons to say something. I congratulated Jurgen Klopp on reaching the final. I never laugh at anyone, even when we win.”
Having made Bundesliga title theirs, the Spaniard stated that they are only concerned about the Champions League semi-final against his former club Barcelona. However, he seems to be wary of the threat that their nascent opponents in Bayer Leverkusen impose.
“Of course, we have the semi-finals [Champions League] in the head, but we must first focus on Leverkusen. They are a Champions League team. We play without a goal, because that has been reached.”
The 44-year-old manager revealed that Robert Lewandowski would be available for selection only for the Barcelona game and denied to comment on Ilkay Gundogan rumours stating that he was never bothered about it.