By AGENCIES… German champions Bayern Munich host Borussia Dortmund on Saturday – a match described as the “biggest game of the season in Europe”.
Both teams were knocked out at the last-16 stage of the Champions League by English clubs, Bayern losing against Liverpool and Dortmund suffering defeat at the hands of Tottenham.
And for once, Bayern, managed by Niko Kovac, are the ones chasing Lucien Favre’s Dortmund, who lead the way by just two points with seven games remaining.
At the start of December, the title race looked to be over with Dortmund nine points clear at the top, but Bayern took advantage of the stuttering form of their rivals to claw back the deficit.
Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski leads the scoring chart this season and is just one strike away from registering 200 goals in the top flight but Dortmund’s Spanish striker Alcacer is just three adrift for this term and has scored at a quicker rate.
Bayern Munich
After relinquishing top spot with a 1-1 draw at Freiburg last weekend, Bayern will be keen to return to the top of the pile heading into the final six games of the season by beating Dortmund in a fixture which could go a long way towards deciding this year’s Bundesliga champions.
Coach Niko Kovac has Manuel Neuer back in contention after the Germany No.1 missed the trip to Freiburg as well as Wednesday’s thrilling 5-4 cup win over Heidenheim. James Rodriguez came off at half-time as a precaution, the Colombian expected to recover from a groin complaint in time for Saturday.
Arjen Robben and Alphonso Davies remain the only confirmed absentees, the former just two goals away from 100 for Bayern in the Bundesliga. Corentin Tolisso is on the road to recovery from a knee injury, meanwhile, and could return before the season’s out.
“This isn’t a vintage Bayern team – the one that has beaten Dortmund four times in four years at the Allianz. In times past, if Lewandowski didn’t fire, Thomas Muller, Arjen Robben or Franck Ribery would but everyone looks a little less than they were. It is the end of an era for Bayern and if there is a time for Dortmund to catch them, it is now.”
Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund established a two-point advantage at the top thanks to their last-gasp 2-0 win over Wolfsburg last weekend, a victory achieved without Marco Reus, who became a father for the first time that day.
The club captain will go straight back into BVB’s starting XI, but full-back Achraf Hakimi, on a two-year loan from Real Madrid, is out for the remainder of the season with a metatarsal injury. A defensive injury crisis means that Raphael Guerreiro’s attacking talents may have to be sacrificed, with the Portuguese Euro 2016 winner asked to cover at left-back.
“Dortmund raced into this lead and had this incredible start to the season. Jadon Sancho was setting up goals, Alcacer was coming on with 15 minutes to go and scoring hat-tricks, Marco Reus was back and looking brilliant and then, around March, the time when they played Spurs, they just stopped. Dortmund have this big game at the Allianz, where they don’t need to win, they just need to draw to keep their two-point lead.”
Match stats
- This is the 100th meeting between these two sides in the Bundesliga. The last time Dortmund – or any other team – were ahead of Bayern after 27 games of the season was back in 2011/12, when the Westphalians went on to win the title
- Bayern have lost the last four clashes with Dortmund when they found themselves behind their rivals in the standings
- Dortmund have scored 21 goals in the final 15 minutes of games this season, establishing a new club record
- Robert Lewandowski has scored 13 Klassiker goals: 12 for Bayern and one for Dortmund; only Gerd Müller has more, with 14
- Bayern have already conceded as many goals this season (28) as they did in the whole of last term
- Bayern have won their past seven home games, the last two by 6-0 margins.
Probable line-ups
Bayern: Neuer (c) – Kimmich, Süle, Hummels, Alaba – Martinez, Thiago – Gnabry, James, Coman – Lewandowski
Out: Davies (knee), Robben (calf)
Doubtful: Tolisso (knee)
Coach: Niko Kovac
Dortmund: Bürki – Wolf, Akanji, Zagadou, Guerreiro – Witsel, Delaney – Sancho, Reus (c), Bruun Larsen – Alcacer
Out: Hakimi (metatarsal), Pulisic (thigh)
Doubtful: Diallo (calf), Philipp (knee)
Coach: Lucien Favre
Bayern are aiming for a league and German Cup double, after progressing to the semi-finals of the competition by scraping past second-division side Heidenheim.
The 28-time champions are on a run of six consecutive Bundesliga titles, but are already looking to the future by building for next season.
