Month: November 2020

Borussia Dortmund hosted perennial Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich for the week seven match of the 2020-2021 season. This was a top of the top table match with Dortmund hoping to beat a team they often capitulate to, not necessarily in home matches but certainly in the title challenges.

Mats Hummel was a late confirmed player as he was nursing an injury but made the starting line up. Bayern were without Alphonso Davies and Niklas Sule, the latter due to COVID-19 isolation. The stadium was once again almost empty due to pandemic. Erling Haaland vs Robert Lewandowski is of course the highlight matchup when these two teams meet these days but they are are filled in dynamic players with attacking talent in particular in the likes of Marco Reus and Jadon Sancho for Dortmund and Thomas Muller, Serge Gnarby and Kingsley Coman for Bayern.

An early chance was shot to the side netting as Bayern got off to an almost very fast start. In the early minutes Dortmund looked lively and penetrated the Bayern final third well. Bayern came close in the 14th minute with a half chance worked well following a corner. The two sides were quick to use the ball. Erling Haaland came close off a great long pass by Thomas Delaney to Giovanni Reyna. Soon after Bayern thought that they have opened the scoring but the notorious VAR correctly judged Lewandowski to be barely offside. Bayern grew into the match and forced Roman Buerki in the Borussia goal to work more and more. Bayern were forced into a first half sub when Joshua Kimmich hurt his knee while trying to stop a Haaland counter. The German international got himself a yellow in the process. Corentin Tolisso came on. Very late in the half Dortmund found the opener as a good passage of play was banged in by Reus from a Raphael Guerreiro cut back. The lead wasn’t to last as a free kick at the top of the box, for which Delaney got a yellow, was put in, albeit deflected, by David Alaba.

The second got off to an early start as Haaland missed an early chance from a no look Sancho pass and then Lewandowski headed into the far corner from a Lucas Hernandez cross.A classic goal from the prolific Polish player. Coman hit the post soon after that as Dortmund escaped. Haaland kept making it beyond Bayern’s defense but nothing came off of the chances. Reyna could have done more with a half chance as well, a few more half chances were not finished either as Dortmund didn’t trouble Neuer too much. It was eventually Bayern who scored again. Leroy Sane, a sub 10 minutes earlier, scored a well placed shot from a quick counter. Lewandowski provided the assist this time. Haaland reduced the gap three minutes later with a typical finish through the heart of opposition defense and an outstretched Neuer.

The teams exchanged some chances and another VAR, decision denied Lewandowski but the game ended 2-3 at the Westfalenstadion. Bundesliga’s best defense before the start of this match day couldn’t contain the offensive power that is Bayern.