Bayern Munich continues to win

Bayern Munich's defender Martin Demichelis of Argentina battles Arsenal's Jose Antonio Reyes of Spain in Munich during their Champions League match on Feb. 22. PHOTO: AFP

Bayern Munich is facing three crucial matches in an eight-day period, but the team's biggest ever German Cup victory against a first division team has left the players jubilant.

Bayern, which leads the Bundesliga and has been recording one blowout after another, crushed SC Freiburg 7-0 on Wednesday in the German Cup quarterfinals.

"That was incredible fun -- everything worked perfectly," Bayern midfielder Michael Ballack said.

Bayern coach Felix Magath was relieved his team had such an easy time against Freiburg, and he's now hoping they will be well rested for the upcoming matches against Werder Bremen, Arsenal and Schalke.

"Looking ahead, it was really good they didn't have to play to their limit," Magath said.

Bayern begins its grueling three-game stretch on Saturday against third-place Bremen, the defending Bundesliga champion and winners of five straight league matches.

On Wednesday, the Munich team faces Arsenal in the Champions League.

Schalke, which trails Bayern only on goal difference, will be the final opponent on the following Sunday.

Bremen enters the match a little desperate, but still radiating confidence. Despite its recent roll, the Bundesliga and German Cup winners from last season trail Bayern and Schalke by four points with two-thirds of the season played.

"It's our last chance. Everything could be over for us with a defeat," Valerien Ismael said.

The Frenchman says the North German club has stabilized itself after giving away too many points with costly mistakes before the winter break.

"Yes, we're back again. There's no reason for us to be scared of Bayern," Ismael said. "We're more experienced, altogether better than last year when we won two titles."

Bremen overcame the loss of Bundesliga scoring leader Ailton, who jumped to Schalke, to score more goals than last season. This year the attack is diversified, with Miroslav Klose's 12 strikes -- tied for third in the league -- leading five effective strikers.

But Bremen also faces a very tough match just four days after tangling with the Bayern. After a 3-0 rout by Lyon in the Champions League, the club will have to pull off a small miracle during the second leg in France.

"We're going there to win, and at the moment we're very strong, even though we lost against Lyon," Valerien said. "We played better against the French than the score indicated."

Bayern's confidence must be sky high after it's recent outings, which include a 5-0 rout of Borussia Dortmund, a 3-1 win over Arsenal and a 7-0 thrashing of Freiburg.

The club's biggest problem is an overabundance of players in impressive form. At attacking midfield, only Ballack is first choice. The other two spots will be a fight between Torsten Frings, Ze Roberto, the resurgent Sebastian Deisler, Hasan Salihamidzic and Bastian Schweinsteiger.

And Bayern can rely on a smothering defense, which rarely allows opponents a good chance these days.

Magne Hoseth scored in injury time to give FC Copenhagen a 2-2 draw against Rosenborg in a Royal League Group 1 second-round match on Thursday.

The Group 2 game between Valerenga and former two-time UEFA Cup champion IFK Goteborg of Sweden was canceled because of an icy pitch at Ulleval Stadium in Oslo, Norway, where overnight temperatures reached minus 20 C.

The first match at the new Wembley Stadium will be the FA Cup final on May 13, 2006.

The English Football Association announced the date on Thursday, moving the game forward by a week to give players on England's national team a four-week break before the start of the World Cup finals in Germany.

The Premier League will also end a week earlier.

To accommodate the change, some FA Cup matches will be settled by penalties rather than by traditional replays.

Rinus Michels dies

Rinus Michels, the Dutch soccer coach who helped invent "total football," has died at age 77.

Michels died early Thursday morning in a hospital in Aalst, Belgium, after complications resulting from heart surgery two weeks ago, the Dutch soccer federation said.

Michels, known as "the General," led the Netherlands to its only international title, the 1988 European Championship -- a victory which triggered widespread celebrations.

"I think that that moment, and the explosion that enveloped me -- that was one of the most beautiful moments," Michels said in a recent interview on Dutch television.

He also coached the team at the 1974 World Cup, where the Dutch lost to West Germany in the final.