The Treble Was on the Way!

Bayern's chartered plane quietly arrived at Milan Airport.

A luxury coach with a red body had been waiting on the tarmac for some time.

As soon as the plane came to a stop, the luxury coach drove over and parked not far from the aircraft stairs.

When the players stepped out of the cabin and descended the stairs, the female coach driver, Sandra Kölning, and her copilot were already waiting in front of the bus. Smiling, they waved at the players, wearing Sandra's trademark smile.

The players smiled when they saw them, too. They walked over to high-five them one by one, then climbed straight onto the coach and took their seats in their familiar assigned places.

Everyone knew that Sandra and her copilot had arrived in Milan two days earlier. During those two days, they had driven back and forth along every route from the airport to the hotel and from the hotel to Meazza Stadium several times, paying particular attention to Milan's traffic conditions at different times of day.

In fact, Bayern kept extremely detailed records of all kinds of data concerning away matches. The oldest records could be traced back more than a decade, even several decades. This helped the team make better decisions on the road.

For example, which hotel was best for an away team to stay in?

This was not something to underestimate.

When Ferguson's team played Roma away, he had once complained that the soundproofing at the hotel booked by the club was terrible. As a result, the team's sleep had been affected, and they had been unable to rest properly, which in turn affected Manchester United's performance the next day.

Bayern, however, made the most appropriate arrangements every time they played away, from the hotel and transportation to every other aspect.

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