The Champions League group stage is always worth watching, if for no other reason than just for the matchups of teams themselves. That's certainly the case with this match, putting modern juggernauts Bayern Munich against fallen powers Olympiacos.
While Olympiacos have never won a major European competition, they used to frequently be a factor in them, posing a significant challenge to the bigger clubs in England and Germany and Italy and Spain and often creating an upset or three. Now, despite dominating the Greek Super League, they can't compete financially with the titans of other countries, causing them to struggle to compete on the pitch with them.
That's likely going to be the case again today, as they take on arguably one of the three best teams in Europe right now, Pep Guardiola's Bayern Munich. Even in their current battered state, Bayern are very good and much better than Olympiacos. No win is ever guaranteed, especially in Greece, but Bayern and their fans have to be feeling pretty good about this match. Still, wouldn't it be something if Olympiacos could turn back the clock and give them a real challenge?
Key player -- Thomas Müller (Bayern Munich)
While Müller is often not given the full credit for just how good he is, that doesn't change just how excellent a player Müller is and how vital he is to Bayern. Simply put, when Müller plays well, Bayern win. When he doesn't, they tend to struggle to work around him. In a team with Robert Lewandowski, Arturo Vidal, Phillip Lahm, and Manuel Neuer among Bayern's other stars, Müller is their best and most important player. And against a team like Olympiacos, that's simply not as good as Bayern, Müller could be in line for a fun, fun day in the final third.
Key factor -- Olympiacos on the counter
While Olympiacos can't hope to stand toe to toe with Bayern and win a slugging match, they can offer a fairly significant threat off the counter. They spent their summer building a lightning-quick attacking group, and their midfield -- anchored by Esteban Cambiasso, Giannis Maniatis and Pajtim Kasami -- is well capable of playing the ball to them on the break. If they can coax Bayern into stretching themselves out just a little too far, Olympiacos can and will punish them for it once they win possession back. Bayern are a fairly disciplined side, but they can be prone to spells of overconfidence. They'll need to keep those to a minimum in this match, or risk winding up with a very unfortunate result.
Olympiacos injuries and suspensions
Out: Luka Milivojević (suspended) In doubt: none
Bayern Munich injuries and suspensions
Out: Arjen Robben (groin), Franck Ribery (ankle), Mehdi Benatia (thigh), Jan Kirchoff (Achilles), Holger Badstuber (thigh) In doubt: none
That is a long and talented list of injured players for Bayern. But because they're Bayern, their depth is pretty fantastic, so they're not really worried -- except at center back, where fullback/midfielder/winger/utility god David Alaba seems likely to deputize in the absence of three potential starters. It's a role we've seen him play variations of before, so Bayern should be fine, especially as he's excellent against counter-attacking teams like Olympiacos.
Match Date/Time: Wednesday, 2:45 p.m. ET, 8:45 p.m. local
Venue: Stadio Georgios Karaiskáki, Piraeus, Greece
TV: ESPN2 (U.S.), Sky Sport 1/HD, Sky Sport 3/HD, ZDF (Germany), OTE Sport 2, NERIT1, Neritan HD (Greece), BT Sport Extra (U.K.)
Online: Fox Soccer 2 Go (U.S), Sky Go Deutschland (Germany)