Cârţu keeps CFR believing as Bayern lie in wait

FC Bayern München coach Louis van Gaal may have a number of injuries to contend with but he is hoping the confidence gained from an impressive 3-0 weekend win against Hannover 96 will propel his side to a third straight victory in UEFA Champions League Group E against CFR 1907 Cluj. The Romanian side have been struggling domestically, but with three points already to their name in Europe, Sorin Cârţu insists they are "in with a chance".

Louis van Gaal, Bayern coach
I watched Cluj against Roma and I also watched their last Romanian league game. They are a good team, we have to be careful. Cluj have good players, especially the forward Traoré. He is tall, but still very flexible, technically strong and good with the ball. They will play quite defensively and try to score on the counterattack; I hope we can score an early goal so the game opens up.

This will be a chance for some players who usually sit on the bench to prove themselves as we have a lot of injuries. The team's confidence is much higher than in previous weeks which is normal after a victory. I hope my players show that confidence from the start against Cluj. Confidence is important for every player – especially for a forward like Mario Gómez. I'm sure he will score again against Cluj.

Sorin Cârţu, CFR Cluj coach
Bayern are obviously favourites. They are a great club, a titan of European football, but we already have three points and are in with a chance. Last Saturday Bayern showed their quality even though they were missing key players such as Robben, Ribéry and Van Bommel. They still have the likes of Gómez, Müller or Schweinsteiger. I think Schweinsteiger is the best midfielder in the world at the moment. You saw it in Hannover; when he came on, Bayern took absolute control of the game.

We were unlucky against Roma and I hope we play as well [against Bayern] as we did against them, but in the Champions League luck plays a large part and we will need plenty against Bayern. Of course they are a much better team with better individual players and we need to be very honest about that. It will be a very, very tough match. I just hope my team won't feel too much pressure.

Team news
• Bayern
Bastian Schweinsteiger (foot) is fit after returning as a substitute against Hannover 96 on Saturday, but Ivica Olić (broken nose) and Daniel Van Buyten (back) remain doubtful. Arjen Robben (thigh), Franck Ribéry (ankle), Breno (cruciate), Diego Contento (groin), Mark van Bommel (knee), Miroslav Klose (thigh), Rouven Sattelmaier (bicep) and David Alaba (ankle) have all been ruled out.

• CFR
Saša Bjelanović came on as a late substitute at FC Vaslui on Friday after recovering from an ankle knock, but Gabriel Mureşan has not played since picking up a leg injury on 24 September and Yssouf Koné's knee ligament injury means he has not been included in their squad.

Weekend results
16/10/10 Bayern 3-0 Hannover 96
(Gómez 21 77 90)
Gómez's maiden hat-trick for Bayern – his first league goals of the season – secured victory after back-to-back Bundesliga defeats. The game was the 250th to be staged at the Fußball Arena München since the venue opened in 2005.

15/10/10 FC Vaslui 5-3 CFR
(Sânmărtean 27, Adaílton 35 58, Burdujan 63 87; De Zerbi 59, Bastos 88, Dică 89)
Roberto De Zerbi and Rafael Bastos scored for the second successive game but it was not enough for CFR to avoid a fifth loss in nine league outings, their sixth in 12 matches in all competitions. After 11 league games CFR have amassed 12 points – their worst start to a campaign since returning to Liga 1 in 2004.

Did you know?
While CFR have never played Bundesliga opposition before, Bayern are unbeaten in six matches against Romanian teams with three wins; two of their three draws came in Munich.

For more information see the match background.