For nearly 5 years, the fixture between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund has been one of the most exciting fixtures in club football. The Dortmund side has changed from the swashbuckling and energetic Jurgen Klopp’s team to a more methodical but still pacy team under Tuchel. The Bayern Munich team looks completely different under Carlo Ancelotti from his predecessor Pep Guardiola, with more focus on the defensive side and towards counter attacking.
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Both the teams boast of world class talents in nearly every position. From World Cup-winning veterans like Philipp Lahm and Xabi Alonso to exciting talents like Joshua Kimmich and Ousmane Dembele, the two teams are stacked to the core. But who would make it in the combined XI?
Goalkeeper
Manuel Neuer
One of the few undisputed selections in this combined XI is that of goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. The Bayern Munich keeper is regarded as the world’s best goalkeeper for years now by popular choice and his ability seems to be far from waning. He has been providing match winning performances whenever required.
Even after Guardiola departure, Neuer still continued with his role of sweeper-keeper in the Munich defence.
Although he is still slightly error prone, his match-winning abilities far outweighs any negatives. Time and again he has been the difference between a point and three.
Carlo Ancelotti would be hoping that the team won’t require any heroics from Neuer against BVB but if they do, Neuer will undoubtedly be standing in the goal like a wall. It’s fair to say, Roman Burki did not stand a chance against the German captain.
DefendersRight-back: Philipp Lahm
Lukasz Piszczek has been a steady figure for Borussia Dortmund in the right back position for nearly 7 years now but the right back position in the combined XI has to be the legendary Philipp Lahm.
A Bavarian through and through, Lahm has been playing for the Bayern Munich senior team for nearly 13 seasons. Bayern’s captain and one of the greatest full backs of all time, Lahm is still going strong at the age of 33. After an experimental change of position under Guardiola to defensive midfield, he has returned back to his favourite right-back position and has been dominating the wingers again ever since.
Piszczek has often been ciriticised for being a bit too attacking for a player playing in the defensive line and not contributing enough to the defensive side of the game. Lahm’s defensive guile and exceptional leadership qualities propels him into this side.
Centre-back: Jerome Boateng
Jerome Boateng has been consistently rock solid for Bayern since signing for them in 2011. Although he seems to have suffered a slight slump recently, he revels in big matches.
The German international fends off competition from solid centre backs like Javi Martinez and Sokratis based on his performances over the past 3 years for Pep Guardiola’s Bayern side. He has often been the only traditional centre back for Guardiola’s side and held the defence together on his own.
Centre-back: Mats Hummels
Mats Hummels has quickly settled into his new team after his controversial move from Dortmund in the summer. His composure and long range passing is unmatched even by his defensive partner, Boateng.
Hummels was Dortmund’s best centre-back for years and captained the side before moving to their rivals and his current team, Bayern Munich. He is known for his aerial abilities and being extremely decisive on the pitch even as a centre back.
Their partnership also extends to the national team, increasing their compatibility. Along with the numerous defensive contributions, both of them are also known for their immaculate long range passing.
Left Back: David Alaba
Alaba completes the all Bayern backline. Alaba’s favourite position is defensive midfield, where he plays for Austria, but his performances for Bayern as a left back have been immense. He has made 18 interceptions so far with 3 defensive actions per match.
The Austrian is an attacking full-back and likes to maraud down the flanks which shows in the number of chances created by him – 14.
BVB’s Schmelzer has been inconsistent this season and has been replaced by Raphel Guerreiro, both failing to match Alaba’s quality and consistency at left back.
Midfielders
Defensive midfielder: Julian Weigl
Bayern Munich defensive midfielder, Xabi Alonso, has been a World Cup and European Championship winner, apart from the numerous trophies he’s won at Real Madrid and Liverpool, but he’s pipped by young Weigl in this XI.
Alonso has been consistent for Bayern Munich but his sharpness seems to be waning in his mid-30s
Weigl boasts of a passing accuracy of 91% and has been likened to Barcelona’s Sergio Busquets for his footballing intelligence. The young German acts as a shield in front of the defence and has intercepted the opposition attacks 18 times so far.
Central Midfielder: Thiago Alcantara
Known to be Xavi’s successor since his early Barcelona days, Thiago dictates the play from midfield when on the pitch. The Spanish international boasts of a passing accuracy of 91% and created 13 chances.
The midfielder is also useful in the defensive side of the game and has made 36 defensive actions including 34 interceptions.
Thiago has become an important part of the Munich XI this season having made 9 appearances so far and is in the form of his life.
Central Midfielder: Arturo Vidal
Vidal is one of the most flamboyant and hardworking box-to-box midfielders in the world and could walk into most midfields in the world. Vidal has created 10 chances for the team while completing 22 defensive actions.
Dortmund’s Castro has been in great form this season and links the midfield with the attack perfectly.
However, Vidal’s workrate is unmatched. After struggling to tactically fit in the Pep’s Bayern side for the first 6 months, Vidal is showing the form that he showed while playing for Juventus.
Forwards
Left Winger: Ousmane Dembele
Franck Ribery may not have suffered from any loss of ability with age, but he has suffered from numerous injuries. Hence, the left wing is dominated by the new teenage sensation, Ousmane Dembele.
The French youngster has scored 2 decisive goals and created a total of 14 chances for his Borussia Dortmund side. Dembele’s two-footedness is his biggest strength as he has completed 35 takeons so far – the highest in the league.
It would be interesting to see how Dortmund manage to keep him as the biggest clubs in the world will be after him in no time.
Right Wing: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
The right wing is taken by the Dortmund striker, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Although he plays as a striker, he has often played on the right wing and can be a pain for defenders with his searing pace.
He is a constant goal threat with his speed, having scored 11 goals in the league so far. Having scored 25 goals in the league last season, he seems like a man on a mission under Tuchel.
Bayern’s Robben has been struggling with injuries and while Emre Mor has been promising, he has failed to consistently produce a final product. Pulisic has been BVB’s first choice on the right wing but the American youngster has a long way to go before being considered amongst the bigwigs.
Striker: Robert Lewandowski
The striker position is filled by the Polish target man, Robert Lewandowski. The former Dortmund has scored 7 goals this season, with many of them being match winning ones.
Lewandowski settled into the Bayern Munich within weeks after joining and has been scoring at an incredible rate.
The striker’s scoring rate is only matched by a few other strikers like Suarez and Aguero and his hold up play is world class. His career graph is consistently upwards ever since his move to Klopp’s BVB team 6 years ago. With nearly 200 goals in the last 7 seasons, he can walk into almost any team in the world.
Substitutes: Roman Burki (GK), Sokratis, Javi Martinez, Castro, Renato Sanches, Costa, Robben.
Final XI:
The defensive line consists of only Bayern Munich players as most Dortmund defenders have been faltering regularly.
The midfield consists of Weigl as the lone defensive pivot supported by two hard working and creative central midfielders in Thiago and Vidal. BVB’s Castro has been immense this season but misses out to technically superior players.
The wings are handled by two of the fastest players in the league and BVB’s main game changers, Aubameyang and Dembele. However, Aubameyang misses out on his favourite position as he has to be paired with Lewandowski and Aubameyang is more comfortable playing in the wings.
With 20 goals in that frontline this season, surely one of them will score the winner.
