Bayern lift Super Cup
Bayern Munich saw off Schalke on Saturday to add the German Super Cup to their enviable silverware collection.
Louis van Gaal's side, who secured a domestic double last season, eased to a comfortable 2-0 win and once again appear to be the team to beat in German football.
Despite being forced to cope without injured winger Arjen Robben, the besieged Franck Ribery and the resting Mark van Bommel, the result was never in doubt.
Bayern were far too strong for their Bundesliga rivals and triumphed courtesy of two late goals from World Cup stars Thomas Muller and Miroslav Klose.
They dominated the match throughout, with Bastian Schweinsteiger going close after eight minutes and Klose seeing a 51st-minute drive come back off a post.
They had display commendable patience before forcing the breakthrough, but it duly arrived on 75 minutes.
Muller, who has been handed a new lucrative contract at Allian Arena, was the man to find the target and Klose added a second six minutes later.
"This team is better than last year's because everyone knows what they have to do," said Van Gaal, who led his team to the Champions League final last season.
"I think that we are a bit further ahead than we were at this time last year and the players have understood what we want and everybody knows what they have to do, but we can still improve as individuals and take another step forwards," he said.
"We still must improve from game to game."
Schalke coach Felix Magath, who tempted Spanish star Raul to leave Real Madrid in the summer, remains cautious over whether or not his team can chase Bayern all the way in the title race, just as they did last season when they finished runners-up.
"You must see that we haven't yet got the quality to beat a high-level team," he said.
Nevertheless, he was satisfied that his half-time team talk had at least brought a marked improvement to his side.
"I was very disappointed in the first half," he said. "The second half was better and it is a shame that we made an error for them to lead 1-0."
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