Robben still 'mad' at Pep over penalty call, claims Ribery

The Dutchman refused to take a spot kick for Bayern in their 5-0 win over Viktoria Plzen, which left the head coach confused and a Roten legend fuming.

Arjen Robben is still seething from not being permitted by Pep Guardiola to take a penalty at the weekend, Franck Ribery has claimed on the back of Bayern Munich's 5-0 victory over Viktoria Plzen.

The Roten coach stopped the Dutch winger from taking a spot kick in favour of Thomas Muller in Saturday's 4-1 Mainz triumph, but on Wednesday was shouting from the sidelines for the 29-year-old to take a penalty.

However, Robben shook his head and finger, refusing the ex-Barcelona boss, allowing Ribery to step up and score it - his first of two strikes at the Allianz Arena against the Czechs.

Ribery revealed to Sky: "The players wanted him to shoot, but he is still a little mad because of Saturday."

Guardiola, who has increased Bayern's win streak in Europe to eight games since taking over from the reigning Champions League winners in the summer, expressed his confusion at Robben's choice against Plzen but defended his previous decision to back Muller.

"Yes, Robben wanted to take it," he said. "Why he did not take it, I don't know.

"I like players who want to take penalties. Arjen has a big personality. But the team know why Muller was the one who took it on Saturday."

Bayern goalkeeping legend Oliver Kahn criticised the on-field drama with the scores still at 0-0 and suggested that players should not be arguing over who takes the penalty in a competitive match at Bayern's high level.

"This is unnecessary theatre," he told ZDF. "Psychologically, it's not very smart. The coach should clear this up beforehand."

Robben himself declined to discuss his decision on Wednesday at the Allianz Arena, instead focusing on his fellow Bavarians rallying around him.

"I don't want to talk about it," the ex-Chelsea winger said to Sky. "The case is closed and every word about it is a word too much. The most important thing for me is the support of my team-mates."

Culled from Goal