Bayern Munich 0-3 Borussia Monchengladbach
The two biggest games of this weekend’s Bundesliga action involves Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. However, the games turned out in a different way than imagined.
The BVB came back from the brink of defeat multiple times to pull off one of the most amazing comebacks earlier in the day. It seemed like this game would be the biggest bit of Bundesliga 2018 news to come out today. However, Borussia Monchengladbach had other plans.
Die Fohlen got off into an amazing start to shock the pre-game Bayern Munich vs Borussia Monchengladbach predictions and beat the defending champions, 0-3.
This is definitely not the way Niko Kovac envisioned his maiden voyage at Bayern Munich to turn out.
Highlights of the game
Bayern were determined to get things back on track, especially after Borussia Dortmund pulled off one of the most magnificent comebacks in European club football this calendar year. The Bavarians made use of their strong wing players and fired cross after cross.
Thomas Muller threatened Yann Sommer when he caught a cross and headed the ball to a dangerous spot at goal. The Swiss keeper was able to deflect the ball outwards, but the linesman ruled Muller offside. Bayern kept on using the wings to cross the ball inside, but nothing was coming out of their attempts.
And the Allianz Arena bore witness to an unbelievable sight: the Bavarians conceded a shocking goal in the first ten minutes. Alassane PLea and Jonas Hofmann played a one-two pass to give the French striker some space. He then fired a howitzer from 18 yards that flew to the bottom right and out of Manuel Neuer’s reach.
Kovac’s men tried to get back into the game with an equaliser, and Joshua Kimmich’s beautiful cross in the 14th minute didn’t reach any Bayern player. It ended up in the feet of the Gladbach backline that easily cleared the ball to safety.
Bayern’s worries compounded two minutes later when Gladbach scored another poor goal. Poor defending from Mats Hummels and Thiago Alcantara led to the ball ending up at the feet of Lars Stindl striking from outside the box and past Germany’s No 1 once more. The visiting Gladbach supporters are in glee as their captain, who just recovered from a lengthy injury, lead them to an unbelievable situation.
Bayern Munich are down by two goals in front of their own supporters, and sixteen minutes have only passed by in the game. However, it is still the Bavarians who are the big favourites to cruise through the match, and the subsequent attacks were steadily trying to wear down the pressing defence implemented by Dieter Hecking’s Foals.
Arjen Robben got hold of a cross inside the box and fired the ball goal goalwards, but Yann Sommer was able to handle the shot without any problem. Robert Lewandowski also tested the Swiss stopper with a low-driven shot towards the middle of the goal; Sommer also managed to corral the ball without any problems.
The first half ended at that, and Kovac knew that he has a lot of adjustments to make if he wants to turn this game around in their favour. Bayern tried everything they could to wrestle back the control of the game, but the Gladbach backline wasn’t planning to cede any goals.
Bayern’s frustrations only grew as David Alaba had to get off the pitch due to a knock sustained during a tackle. Kovac had to make an early change and get Renato Sanches on. This was a tough substitution on Kovac’s part, especially since he made two changes at the start of the second half.
Franck Ribery, frustrated with how things have turned out in the game, made a poor foul on a Gladbach player. Frank Willenborg didn’t hesitate to pull out the yellow card on the winger, and Ribery was getting up to the referee’s face in protest to the call. He was lucky that Willenborg didn’t pull out the red for his conduct.
Robert Lewandowski has pulled off a magnificent goal to somewhat bring Bayern Munich back to the game. He was able to beat his marker and slot the ball to the bottom-right corner past Sommer, but the linesman correctly called him offside. Many of the Allianz Arena faithful were shell-shocked with the call.
The seats at Bayern’s stomping grounds are slowly being vacated by the time Borussia Monchengladbach secured the victory with their third goal. Patrick Herrmann controlled Christoph Kramer’s cross and pounced to the goal with a goal inside the right post.
There was deliberation as to whether Herrmann was onside, but a quick look the VAR sealed the goal. Niko Kovac’s face could not be explained as the game ended in another humiliating loss. The ultras were still cheering their team on, but they know that something has to change.
Key statistics
Kovac claims he is not a terrible manager, and all of us know that he is a capable one. However, his rotational decisions over the last couple of fixtures have a direct effect on how the team has played recently. The rut is still pretty evident in this game.
Bayern had the lion’s share of the ball at 72%. They also challenged Sommer with 14 shots, though he only had to make three saves. However, there was no efficiency in Bayern’s attacks as Gladbach’s defensive pressing prevented them from making the most out of their possession.
This was the first in seven games the two played at Bayern’s home ground that the hosts weren’t able to score. Robert Lewandowski has not scored in three successive league games, the first time in two years. This is the first time since May 2015 that Bayern lost consecutive Bundesliga fixtures.
What’s next?
The SBOBET tips on Bayern Munich winning the league have surely taken a hit after such an embarrassing defeat. I am sure that Kovac will be desperate to finally get a positive result, and a lot of time will be required for him to make his changes.
Fortunately for him, their next game against Wolfsburg won’t happen until the 20th of October. Following that game will be a trip to Greece for their Champions League clash against AEK Athens.
Meanwhile, Gladbach will be on a high as they head to the international break. Their next opponents will be Mainz, and they will be playing at home. And there should be no reason for them to not defeat Mainz after their sublime performance against the league’s best (albeit underperforming) side.
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