Bayern v Stuttgart Cup final has a distinct World Cup flavour

Title holders VfB Stuttgart play Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich in the Cup final on Saturday which will bring together 11 players from the German World Cup squad.

Bayern's Manuel Neuer, Jonathan Tah, Joshua Kimmich, Aleksandar Pavlovic, Leon Goretzka, Jamal Musiala and Lennart Karl will be up against a Stuttgart quartet of Alexander Nübel, Angelo Stiller, Jamie Leweling und Deniz Undav.

They will be rivals for the trophy in Berlin before joining forces from Wednesday onwards in the German 26-player squad for the June 11-July 19 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Urbig v Nübel

Recalling the 40-year-old Neuer, who originally retired after 124 caps highlighted by the 2014 World Cup title two years ago was the biggest World Cup nomination talking point.

Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann has made Neuer the number one goalkeeper for the tournament, with Oliver Baumann the first back-up and Nübel the number three keeper.

But Neuer will miss the Cup final with a calf injury, which Bayern board member Max Eberl said won't endanger his World Cup participation, and Jonas Urbig will deputise again.

That is also be a World Cup duel of sorts because Urbig will travel to the US as a training keeper. And should Neuer (or Baumann or Nübel) get injured during the tournament, Urbig would already be with the squad as a potential third keeper.

Will a not nominated trio prove their point?

While Nagelsmann picked seven Munich players and four from Stuttgart, he also snubbed a trio from the two clubs: Stuttgart duo Chris Führich and Maximilian Mittelstädt and Munich talent Tom Bischof.

Führich and Mittelstädt have performed strongly in the past weeks and Nagelsmann named leaving them out "exceptional hardship cases." The two may now want to prove on the big cup stage that they should have been picked.

Looking at the 20-year-old Bischof, Nagelsmann said he was also "very close" to a nomination and added that "he will play at tournaments" in the future.

Can Musiala return to 100%?

Musiala is back from a severe leg injury but is yet to fully reach his form of the past. The Cup final may be the breakthrough stage for the 23-year-old who is still being outshone by Bayern's prominent attacking trio of Harry Kane, Michael Olise and Luis Diaz.

Nagelsmann is not too concerned, is happy with Musiala's steady progress and named him a key player in the World Cup squad.

"Even if Jamal was only at 95%, he would still be one of the most exceptional players on the planet,” Nagelsmann said.

Duel of the holding midfielders

Stiller was a doubt right until Thursday's nomination although he is a key figure in Stuttgart's game. Pavlovic has established himself at top level in Munich and has even managed to become a starter ahead of the experienced Goretzka who is also part of the World Cup squad.

Nagelsmann has named Stiller and Pavlovic "the two most stable deep six players we have in the Bundesliga." But there should be only a place for one of the two in the German starting XI, and both will want to show what they are capable of in the Cup final.