Munich, July 15: Bayern Munich coach Ottmar Hitzfeld is concentrating on getting his players fit for next season rather than looking for an improvement on last year's performance in Europe. Bayern won the domestic double of Bundesliga title and German Cup last season, but were knocked out of the Champions League in embarrassing fashion in the first round. "We should not worry too much what could happen during this season," said Hitzfeld told a news conference on Monday.
"I don't worry about what we will achieve and what we must achieve. Rather, I worry about the day-to-day issues, like how I get my players fit." Club captain Oliver Kahn said that retaining the domestic title was still very important to the players, despite their desire to redeem themselves in European competition.

"There are those who are saying Bayern will only concentrate on the Champions League," said the Bayern goalkeeper.

"That's complete nonsense. The day-to-day business is very important to us, to dominate the Bundesliga.

"You only find self-esteem for the Champions League through good Bundesliga games. On top of that, of course, we want to try and demonstrate our strength on an international level."

Bureau Report.