Four games ago, Bayern trailed Borussia Dortmund by five points – but victory on Saturday has now put them six points clear at the top of the BundesligaIt was the sort of evening after which crumbs of comfort had to be searched for, and Borussia Dortmund’s website did exactly that after Saturday’s defeat by Bayern Munich. “BVB edge stats despite defeat,” said the headline, before going on to explain how their team had the upper hand in terms of shots, corners and pass completion. The players, it seemed, were in no mood for gentle consolation. “We weren’t ready to play,” said Christian Pulisic, one of the team’s few bright spots, after the game. “Bayern did whatever they wanted.” Gonzalo Castro...
The returning Jupp Heynckes has breathed new life into Bayern, but with their rivals spluttering, it is hard to judge by exactly how muchWhen Jupp Heynckes agreed to retake the position of head coach at Bayern Munich for the remainder of the season, it seemed impossible he could enhance his reputation. Just over three weeks later – five games, five wins, and only one goal (a penalty) conceded – and maybe he has begun to do just that, at the age of 72.All is far happier in the house of Bayern, certainly, with Saturday’s 2-0 win over Leipzig taking the champions back to the top of the table, in combination with Dortmund’s loss at Hannover, before Der Klassiker at Westfalen...
Peter Bosz’s side let slip a 2-0 lead at Frankfurt as injuries and suspensions hit the backline in a Bundesliga season that is opening up into a three-way fightAfter Borussia Dortmund threw away a two-goal lead at Eintracht Frankfurt and were forced to settle for a draw, the journey home proved pretty memorable, too. With the motorway closed, and the team coach and fans alike stuck in traffic, near the town of Haiger, two dozen or so supporters took it on themselves to serenade the stationary team bus with an impromptu rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone. Gänsehaut – goose bumps, Dortmund said. Following Die Schwarzgelben is rarely dull.There was the entertaining heavy metal football under Jürgen Klopp, they scored...
This was the match of the season so far in the Bundesliga, hands down, as RB Leipzig ended Dortmund’s incredible unbeaten run at Signal Iduna ParkIt was clear, from the way Ralph Hasenhüttl jumped on the pitch at full-time, bouncing with his fists pumping and the full complement of equally jubilant backroom staff in tow, that this meant something – that this meant everything. In winning at Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig had done more than beaten the leaders, and more than further opened up what threatens (at least for now) to be a title race.It meant more, even, than ending BVB’s incredible unbeaten Bundesliga run at Signal Iduna Park, incorporating 41 matches – under Jürgen Klopp, to Bayern Munich, in...
The passion from both sets of fans remains undimmed, but the question is whether the teams will get away with underachieving again this seasonEven by the standards of local tussles and their particular intensity, it wasn’t much of a spectacle. Pundit Lothar Matthäus told the Sky audience that Saturday’s 107th top-flight Nordderby between Hamburg and Werder Bremen “didn’t deserve a sold-out stadium” – nearly 55,000 were there – but what did anybody expect? These two grand old clubs have been on the train leaving Worried, headed for Desperate, for a while and after this fractious encounter, neither look like taking a diversion soon.For HSV, who had a muted celebration of the club’s 130th birthday on Friday, it was tougher to...