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Bayern Munich welcomed Borussia Dortmund to the Allianz Arena on Saturday with the reigning Bundesliga champions in a bit of a tricky situation. Bayern had parted ways with Nico Kovac after last weekend’s 5-1 defeat at the hands of Eintracht Frankfurt. The German giants started the game 6th in the Bundesliga table, 4 points behind surprise league leaders Monchengladbach. Interim manager Hans-Dieter Flick had his hands full because their rivals were coming into the game with momentum on their side.
Borussia Dortmund were 4th in the table ahead of the game, 3 points off the top, but had seen off a spirited Inter Milan side in midweek in the UEFA Champions League. Lucien Favre’s side had conceded just 11 goals in 10 games in the league, the second-lowest after Wolfsburg. There was a lot more on stake than just 3 points in the Der Klassiker and both managers named their teams accordingly.
Bayern Munich Starting XI: Manuel Neuer; Benjamin Pavard, Javi Martinez, David Alaba, Alphonso Davies; Joshua Kimmich, Serge Gnabry, Leon Goretzka, Thomas Muller, Kingsley Coman; Robert Lewandowski
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Borussia Dortmund Starting XI: Roman Bürki; Achraf Hakimi, Mats Hummels, Manuel Akanji, Nico Schulz; Julian Weigl, Axel Witsel, Julian Brandt; Jadon Sancho, Mario Götze, Thorgan Hazard
The away side started well, but it was Bayern Munich who took the lead through Robert Lewandowski in the 17th minute. 2 minutes into the second half, Serge Gnarby doubled Bayern’s lead. Lewandowski put Bayern 3-0 up in the 76th minute, before a Mats Hummels own goal in the 80th minute summed up a brilliant night for Bayern Munich. Here are the hits and flops from the game.
#5 Hit: Thomas Muller
The German International has taken a back seat this season, allowing others to take most of the accolades. However, Thomas Muller still is a vital cog in this Bayern Munich team. Against Borussia Dortmund, the German showcased his importance once again.
Muller might not have picked up a goal, but he ended the night with two assists. He set up Gnarby’s goal in the first half, before helping Lewandowski score his second after the break. The German international worked extremely hard on the pitch and had 75 touches on the ball, registering 3 key passes. He recorded 7 tackles with a 57% success rate and was one of the best players in the game.
#4 Flop: Mats Hummels
Mats Hummels made the move back to Borussia Dortmund this summer from Bayern, as Lucien Favre attempted to bolster his defense. The German defender is regarded as one of the best defenders in the world, but against his former team, Hummels struggled and was quite poor.
The German international failed to deal with his former teammate Robert Lewandowski, who ran riot and took the game away from Dortmund. Hummels had 65 touches on the ball and attempted 51 passes with 88% accuracy. He attempted 3 tackles with a 67% success rate and was also dribbled past once in the game. Hummels looked clueless at times and Bayern’s fast and furious frontline caused him a lot of trouble throughout the game.
His misery was compounded in the 80th minute. Ivan Perisic sent in a dangerous low ball into the box from the left, and in an attempt to clear it, Hummels stuck it into his own net. It rounded up a disappointing outing for the German, who was one of the poorest players on the pitch.
#3 Hit: Serge Gnabry
The German international has been the find of the season. Bayern Munich were expected to suffer after the departure of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery in the summer, however, in Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman, the German giants have discovered able replacements for the dynamic duo. And Gnarbry’s steady rise this season has been a cause of great excitement for the reigning Bundesliga champions.
Gnabry started the game in his usual busy manner, pressing to win the ball back and throttling down the wings. He combined well with Benjamin Pavard on the right side and was a continuous threat throughout the game. The German international dropped down to help his team deal with Borussia Dortmund’s initial pressure and then hit the away side hard early in the second half.
Muller’s cut back into the box from the left was missed by Lewandowski, but Gnabry was at the right place at the right time to slot the ball home. The goal was initially disallowed by the referee, but VAR intervened to correctly let it stand.
#2 Flop: Jadon Sancho
The Englishman is one of the hottest properties in world football right now. After an impressive 2018/19 season, Jadon Sancho was expected to hit a higher gear this term but has failed to live up to the expectations. Against Bayern Munich too, the he had a quiet outing.
Sancho started in his usual right forward role as Lucien Favre attempted to use the speed and technicality of his forward line to hit Bayern on the counter. Unfortunately, Sancho had an off day and failed to have any impact on the game. The Englishman had just 26 touches on the ball and registered a total of 10 passes with 80% success rate. Sadly, he failed to record any key passes in the game and his team missed his contribution in the final third.
The former Manchester City man attempted 6 dribbles, but only one of those was successful. He did not record a single shot in the entire game, as Bayern successfully managed to keep him at bay.
#1 Hit: Robert Lewandowski
The Polish striker has been on fire this season. Ahead of the game, Robert Lewandowski had scored in each of the 10 games in the Bundesliga so far. The Polish international had already scored 14 goals in the league and 21 goals in total before the start of the game, so Borussia Dortmund were wary of the threat he carried. And the away side’s worst nightmare came to life in the 17th minute.
Lewandowski expertly connected with Benjamin Pavard’s improvised cross from the right, heading the ball into the net and giving his team the lead. The former Dortmund man led the line well for Bayern, bringing his attacking compatriots into play and spreading the ball well. The away side had a lot of trouble addressing his movement and positioning, as Robert Lewandowski scored in 11 consecutive games in the Bundesliga. However, he was hardly finished.
In the 76th minute, the Polish striker started and finished off a move, scoring his second of the night and his 16th goal in this Bundesliga season to send Bayern 3-0 up. The striker appears to be at the peak of his powers at the moment and his goal scoring form has been one of the highlights of Bayern’s season.
