HardinPep's compliments, Kruse's green pursuit and silly Schalke

Guardiola's flattering support

"I wish I had a thousand Dantes." After Brazilian center back Dante endured some of his worst form since joining the club, Bayern Munich head coach Pep Guardiola sprang to the support of his defender. He's hailed Bastian Schweinsteiger as a super player, but Spaniard Xabi Alonso - a yellow card machine of late - appears to be the preferred option. And his 37 million euro "chosen one" Mario Götze was on the bench for the most important game of the club's season. It's time someone started talking about Guardiola's hyperbole. Not only is not working, it's just not true anymore.

While protecting his players is admirable, flattery is a dangerous method particularly when standards are remarkably high. Head coaches in professional sport all over the world have turned to compliments when backs are against the wall. In a world saturated with clichés and phrases, the truth is harder and harder to find. In American football, the former head coach of the San Francisco 49ers Jim Harbaugh said his wide receiver Michael Crabtree had the best hands [catching] he had ever seen in the NFL. Harbaugh was fired unceremoniously at the end of the season and Crabtree was cut. It's wishful thinking but wouldn't it be nice if head coaches spoke a bit more truth? We can handle it.

Kruse follows the money

Max Kruse clearly has a career plan. After doing well at Freiburg, he moved up another level to Gladbach. After excelling there, he's now swapping Lucien Favre's high-flying group for Wolfsburg. This time, it's not a competition-based move - the pair have both qualified for the Champions League - but one about earning more for his trade. While Kruse fits into Gladbach's system better, his arrival gives Dieter Hecking much more variation in attack. Wolfsburg will be even more dangerous. Imagine Kevin de Bruyne linking with Ivan Perisic and Max Kruse? Sounds a bit like Gladbach those three at Gladbach this year.

As for Favre and his bunch, the key is not to struggle post departure. Mind you, they've hardly looked back since Marco Reus left so I wouldn't worry.

Something rotten in the state of Schalke

Headlines at Schalke! This isn't really news, but the indefinite suspension of Kevin-Prince Boateng and Sidney Sam is. I've never been in a Bundesliga changing rooms before or after a game, but I've played sport and there have always been and will always be players like Boateng in the team. At least, that's what type of player the Ghanaian appears to be. Clearly, enough was enough and that really doesn't surprise me. The mystery arrives when it comes to Sam and Marco Höger. The former has struggled with injuries, yes, but from the outside looking in he's always been a quiet, hard-working winger. Why now? The latter has been one of their best players this season, but now his future hangs in the balance? For all of Horst Heldt's trust-issue talk, there's no escaping how much of a circus this club is. From nearly beating Real Madrid to winning one of their last eight? Losing out on a Europa League spot to Borussia Dortmund after talk of a Champions League spot earlier in the season would be the end of Roberto di Matteo. In any case, Heldt should follow him out the door.

Wolfsburg have confirmed Mönchengladbach and Germany striker Max Kruse will join the club in the summer on a four-year deal. Kruse scored against Wolfsburg last month as the Foals bid to regain Champions League status. 

THE CUP IS IN BERLIN

The trophy has now been handed over to hosts Berlin

German President Joachim Gauck will be among the 75,000 fans present at the DFB Cup final. Borussia Dortmund and VfL Wolfsburg will be the two sides in the final, which will take place in 19 days time on 30th May (20:00 CEST) in Berlin. The cup has now arrived in the capital.

At the traditional cup handover at the Red City Hall, representative of last year’s winner and record cup holders Bayern München Paul Breitner handed the trophy to DFB General Secretary Helmut Sandrock, who then passed it over to Berlin mayor Michael Müller. Fencing Olympic champion Britta Heidemann will bring the trophy into the ground at the final.

"The DFB Cup will be followed across the world"

This is the second trophy that Müller has been handed in a short space of time after the Champions League trophy arrived in the capital on 27th April ahead of the final there on 6th June. Müller has said that the final will be a great pleasure for him, just as the cup handover has been. “It’s particularly special to meet Klaus Allofs and Paul Breitner,” said the mayor. “I have known for a long time how nice it is to be mayor of Berlin. Today reminded me once more of how great that is.” The cup final will be extremely important for the capital as they will be able to show what a good host they are.

The final has been held in Berlin for the past 30 years. The first final in the capital back in 1985 ended in a 2-1 victory for Bayer Uerdingen over Bayern München. The DFB Cup has developed a lot since then and has become huge, as Helmut Sandrock emphasised: “The DFB Cup will be followed across the world and will be supported by fans and small clubs. That’s what makes it so special.”

Hawk-Eye to make debut in German football

There will also be a special moment of history at the final on 30th May 2015. For the first time, goal line technology will be used in a football match in Germany. Hawk-Eye should prevent incidents, such as Bayern’s Dante clearing Mats Hummels header from behind the line, from happening again.

“We’re delighted that we now have goal line technology,” said DFB General Secretary Sandrock. “Hawk-Eye has worked extremely well in the Premier League. There won’t be any queries and it won’t affect the game at all.”

Breitner: “Berlin is up there with Wembley or the Bernabeu”

Paul Breitner would rather not have handed over the trophy and he says that the defeat in the semi-finals against Dortmund is still having an effect. Or at least a little bit: “And especially with the slim chances of reaching another final in Berlin. Berlin is up there with Wembley or the Bernabeu.”

Breitner looked back on winning the cup for the first time in 1971 in an interview: “I was 19. We won the cup on the Saturday with ten men against Köln after extra time, I got married on the Sunday, I met up with the national team on Monday and then made my first cap on the Tuesday.”

Finale for Klopp

German President Joachim Gauck will be present at the final. 

Dortmund and Wolfsburg will go head-to-head in the final in two weeks time but first they go up against each other in the Bundesliga at the weekend. “We’ve had a lot of ups and downs this season,” said BVB chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke, “but things aren’t looking too bad now from a results point of view.” The final in Berlin will be Jürgen Klopp’s final game as BVB manager. “The hardest times are behind us and it will be an emotional time because after that it will all be over. Jürgen can inspire his team to perform beyond their capabilities. It’s the perfect way to sign off.”

Midfielder Nuri Sahin, who is currently injured, is hoping that his manager can sign off with the title: “We’ve had and are having a unique time. We would have liked to have won the treble but unfortunately that’s no longer possible. The DFB Cup would be a brilliant ending.”

It’s a similar situation at Wolfsburg in terms of their season. Wolfsburg are back among the top sides and have already qualified for the Champions League. “We are very happy as so far it has been an amazing season. There is nothing to complain about, even if we hadn’t made the final,” said sporting director Klaus Allofs. For Wolfsburg keeper and captain Diego Benaglio the final is a “career highlight, which has huge importance for both the club and the city.” The Switzerland international has been in reached the semi-finals on five occasions but this will be his first time in the final in Berlin. And he believes that “we (Wolfsburg) have a good chance.”

Julian Draxler: A truly awful performance

It’s hard to put the defeat in Cologne into words, but Benedikt Höwedes and Julian Draxler still answered some questions from the press after the game. We were in the mixed zone to hear the reactions of the players.

Benedikt Höwedes:

Week by week, it’s getting harder for me find excuses for poor displays like that. It’s not going to sound authentic anymore if we can’t start performing on the pitch. We were missing everything that makes a Schalke team stand out; we had no passion, no commitment, no emotion. We couldn’t keep hold of the ball at the front, nor did we have Köln under any sort of control. There was too much space. We weren’t working without the ball. I’m puzzled as to why the problems we’ve talked about aren’t being addressed on the pitch. Everyone has to ask themselves whether they really implemented everything we planned to. It saddens me that we played the way we did.

Julian Draxler:

It was a truly awful performance. I don’t know what’s wrong with us. You will never win a Bundesliga game playing like that. I’m pretty sure that’s one of the worst games we’ve played in years. I’m glad that I didn’t have to watch that as a spectator. On a personal level, it wasn’t enough either. I’m trying my best after my injury, but I’m hitting my limits at the moment. We know that the fans are angry, and justifiably so. Nevertheless, we have to try and fight our way through this bad season together. 

KRUSE SET TO JOIN WOLFSBURG NEXT SEASON

Germany international Max Kruse will join VfL Wolfsburg from Borussia Mönchengladbach next season. The news was confirmed by Wolfsburg's general manager Klaus Allofs following his team's 3-1 victory in Paderborn on Sunday. "We are very happy that Max Kruse has decided to join VfL Wolfsburg. He is a type of striker that was still missing in our squad and he will definitely boost our quality and options in attack," explained Allofs. Kruse will sign a four-year-deal in Wolfsburg.

Kruse, 27-years-old, joined Gladbach from SC Freiburg in the summer of 2013. In Gladbach, he developed into a Germany international and earned first nominations from coach Joachim Löw for the friendlies against Ecuador and the United States in May 2013. He has so far made eleven appearances for Germany, scoring one goal. "I look forward to taking my next career step in Wolfsburg. I was immediately aware that I wanted to join VfL following good discussions with Klaus Allofs and Dieter Hecking (Wolfsburg's coach). Their playing style suits me and their squad is full of quality players," said Kruse. "My focus will be on Gladbach for the remaining two games. After the summer break, I will look to contribute to a successful future in Wolfsburg."

Wolfsburg coach Hecking, who led the team into the Champions League this season, said: "Max has great technical abilities. He is fast, scores lots of goals and provides assists. He has continually developed into a better player over the years and is currently a key performer at his club. His arrival will boost the quality of our attack, which will be very important looking ahead to the next season."

WOLFSBURG SECURE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TICKET

VfL Wolfsburg will make their return to the Champions League for the first time in five years, following their deserved 3-1 victory in Paderborn. The win also saw Wolfsburg reclaim second place, after Gladbach had temporarily overtaken them on matchday 32. SC Paderborn on the other hand remain fully involved in the relegation battle, currently finding themselves in 17th place. 

Wolfsburg, winless in three prior to matchday 32, are now guaranteed a third place finish and will therefore return to Europe's elite club competition only for the second time in the club's history. Centre back Klose and a brace from Bas Dost provided Wolfsburg with the required goals against Paderborn, who were only able to bag a consolation goal through Lukas Rupp in second half injury time. 

"I feel relieved," said Wolfsburg sporting director Klaus Allofs after the game. "Our performances in recent weeks weren't always that straightforward." He announced the signing of Germany international Max Kruse from Borussia Mönchengladbach for the coming season after the game. "I can confirm that Kruse will sign a four-year deal with Wolfsburg."

Manchester United Lining Up Offer for Schalke's Benedikt Howedes

​Manchester United will start their hunt for defensive reinforcements for next season by attempting to sign Schalke's captain Benedikt Howedes, according to Bild.

It is believed that Manchester United have identified Howedes as one of their targets, after it was recently revealed that the 27-year-old German defender has a clause in his contract, which will allow him to leave for a fee of just €17.5m.

Howedes spent his entire career with Schalke so far, and made 275 appearances for the German side. He stated two months ago, that if he leaves Schalke, he would not go to any other German team, and his "goal" would be a move to England. 

According to the Mirror, he said on Ferbruary the 19th: “If I am to leave Schalke one day, I do not want to move clubs within the Bundesliga."

“Schalke is too close to my heart to do so. But a move abroad at a certain time would be worth an experience."

Bild suggests that the extra TV money going into the Premier League means that even a club like Newcastle United would be able to sign one of Germany's top defenders and offer him wages which the vast majority of Bundesliga clubs couldn't get close to matching. 

However, Bild later reported that Howedes is ambitious and would only go to a top Premier League side like Manchester United.

Schalke wont be playing Champions League football next season, as they sit on 5th place in the standings, with no chance to catch the qualifying spot that would lead them there, and that fact could encourage Howedes even more to leave his beloved club and seek a new challenge.

Mitchell Langerak Texts Robert Lewandowski to Apologise for Fracturing His Cheekbone and Nose

Borussia Dortmund's Mitchell Langerak has texted Robert Lewandowski to apologise for fracturing the Bayern Munich striker's cheekbone and nose. 

The Polish international now faces a last minute fitness test before the crucial Champions League match up against Barcelona after suffering a concussion in the incident with the Dortmund keeper.

Lewandowski, who had opened the scoring in Tuesday's DFB-Pokal semi-final between the two clubs, ended the match in a daze and spent the night in hospital following an extra-time collision with the Australian goalkeeper.

Langerak, an ex-team-mate of the Poland international at Signal Iduna Park, kept out another former Dortmund star, Mario Gotze, in the resulting penalty shoot-out, which Jurgen Klopp's men won 2-0.

According to ​media, Langerak sent a text message to the 23-goal frontman and hopes he will recover in time for next week's Champions League semi-final with Barcelona.