Under-pressure Bayern Munich coach Louis van Gaal will send his team out to face Maccabi Haifa on Wednesday night knowing even victory may not be enough to keep alive their hopes of reaching the Champions League knockout phase.

The Bavarian giants need to beat the Israeli champions at the Allianz Arena to stand any chance of progressing to the last 16, but even that might not be enough.

Bordeaux have already assured their progress and Juventus can do likewise if they beat Les Girondins in France on Wednesday night.

Elimination from Europe's premier club competition could see Van Gaal's short term as Bayern coach come to a premature end.

Van Gaal is under immense pressure with Bayern lying seventh in the Bundesliga, six points adrift of leaders Bayer Leverkusen.

Certainly the 66,000 fans inside the Allianz Arena would not accept yet another draw or, even worse, defeat tomorrow night.

But Van Gaal's chances of winning them over and boosting his own job hopes have been dealt a blow with winger Arjen Robben unable to train yesterday.

The Holland international has made a major contribution in the few games he has played since joining from Real Madrid in August, but he is set to miss out along with Franck Ribery on Wednesday night.

"We are not the same team without Robben and Ribery," admitted general manager Uli Hoeness recently.

President Franz Beckenbauer added that the team "plays better when Ribery is on the field".

"He is my hope," he told Sky television.

But Ribery is definitely out with a knee injury while Robben will meet with club doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt tomorrow morning to take another look at a persistent knee problem.

A note on the club's website states a return is "very unlikely", meaning Van Gaal will again have to improvise with his team, playing Thomas Muller and Bastian Schweinsteiger on either wing.

Miroslav Klose and Mario Gomez will probably start in attack with Luca Toni unlikely to even make the squad after he heavily criticised Van Gaal in a television interview screened in Italy last night.

He said his relationship with the coach is "as good as over".

Maccabi arrived in Munich yesterday to prepare themselves for tomorrow night's clash.

While all the focus has been on Bayern and Juve contesting the second qualification berth from Group A, Maccabi, who have lost their previous four matches in the competition, will be looking for a victory which would give them hope of snatching third position and a place in the Europa League.

And they will be in confident mood after winning their 10th straight league match at the weekend, defeating Maccabi Ahi Nazareth 4-1.

That result took them nine points clear of Hapoel Tel Aviv at the top of the table with a perfect start to the season.