Bayern Munich hope that the return from injury of players led by goalkeeper Manuel Neuer can give them a much-needed boost for Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final at Arsenal.
Bayern are reeling after back-to-back Bundesliga defeats against Borussia Dortmund and Heidenheim with which they have effectively lost the title race against Bayer Leverkusen.
The Champions League is now their last chance to avoid a first season in a dozen years without any silverware, and while a vastly improved performance is needed at Emirates Stadium the return of the injured quintet was at least some good news in difficult times.
Neuer participated in the final training session on Monday in a comeback from an adductor injury, with forwards Leroy Sané and Kingsley Coman also present again along with full back Noussair Mazraoui and midfielder Aleksandar Pavlovic.
Beleaguered coach Thomas Tuchel has said that Neuer will definitely start against Arsenal if fit, Sané and Coman could boost the forward line, and teenager Pavlovic possibly start as well in the first-leg match, with the second game in Munich next week.
Bayern have had good results against Arsenal in the past, thrashing them 5-1 in their last three meetings several years ago, and ousting them three times in the last 16 of the elite event between 2013 and 2017.
But even Bayern board member for sport, Max Eberl, has admitted that the domestic crisis leaves not much room for optimism this time around against the Gunners who sit top of the Premier League in a thrilling title duel with Liverpool and Manchester City.
Asked after the 3-2 defeat against Heidenheim what made him positive for latest meeting, Eberl admitted: "I can't think of much at the moment."
Eberl said he is also not sure whether the European event will lead to an automatic performance boost to avoid a fourth straight quarter-final exit.
"Hoping that this is now Arsenal, this is now the Champions League and we're going to pull together, that's just not going to work," he said.
Veteran forward Thomas Müller meanwhile said that "we will give our all" although "we don't have the punch in many moments right now to deliver results. But we still have the Champions League."
