Borussia Dortmund 0-1 Bayern Munich
FC Bayern have taken a stranglehold on the 2019/20 Bundesliga tonight, after a hard fought victory over BVB at the Signal Iduna Park.
Bundesliga: Dortmund vs FC Bayern was the match everyone was talking about at the resumption of football in Germany as a potentially pivotal match in the title run-in. BVB bossed much of the first half, but when Joshua Kimmich put Die Bayern ahead just before the break things looked bleak for the hosts and the champions held firm.
And now Hansi Flick’s team has one hand on an eighth successive Bundesliga.
Highlights of the game
Despite playing in an empty stadium, and without the usual 80,000 Dortmund fans roaring them on, the hosts ripped into Bayern from the off. Manuel Neuer had to race off his line to deny Thorgan Hazard but the ball arrived at Erling Haaland’s feet. The big Norwegian burst into the box and slid it through Neuer’s legs only to see Jerome Boateng make a goal-line clearance.
Moments later Julian Brandt tested Neuer with a curling effort but the Bayern keeper saved well. And, in a breathless start, there were still only five minutes on the clock when Robert Lewandowski tried his luck for Bayern but Mats Hummels made the crucial block.
BVB had the ball in the net on ten minutes when the in-form Raphael Guerreiro headed home Hazard’s cross but the linesman’s flag went up for offside.
Dortmund had the better of the opening half hour but needed a brilliant goal line clearance from Lukasz Piszcek to deny Serge Gnabry. And BVB keeper Roman Burki had to save at his near post after Gnabry found Kingsley Coman and the forward unleashed his shot.
Haaland continued to be a threat at the other end and head coach Lucien Favre must have been pleased with what he had seen so far but then, on the stroke of half time, the Champions delivered a hefty blow. And it was a moment of brilliance from Joshua Kimmich who picked the ball up just outside the penalty and, seeing Burki straying off his line, lofted a delightful chip over the keeper and into the net.
Take a look at the Dortmund vs FC Bayern highlights when you get the chance, it was a real moment of quality from the midfield ace.
This was a game Dortmund simply couldn’t afford to lose and Favre rang the changes, bringing on Jadon Sancho and Emre Can to replace Thomas Delaney and Brandt. Borussia started brightly, as they did in the first half, but the Bayern threat was always there as Leon Goretzka fired a shot towards the bottom corner which Burki did well to save.
Haaland had a good case for a penalty on 59 minutes when his shot appeared to be deflected behind by Boateng’s arm but VAR didn’t intervene. And he was inches away from meeting a curling ball from Sancho which had he made contact would surely have been the equaliser. Haaland seemed to injure himself as he went for the kill and was replaced by Gio Reyna.
As BVB threw everything at Bayern Mahmoud Dahoud stung Neuer’s palms with a drive from distance and Hazard came close to meeting a cross from Achraf Hakimi. But they couldn’t break down Bayern’s resistance and Lewandowski came within inches of making it two when he tried to curl a shot in, but it took a slight deflection off Hummels and crashed back off the post.
Key statistics
In our pre-match Dortmund vs FC Bayern predictions we backed the hosts to get something from this game and in an evenly matched first half they were unlucky to go into the break behind.
The pattern of play continued into the second half, with the shot count finishing at 13 to 11 and five each on target.
They banged in five goals against Eintracht at the weekend, but FC Bayern only needed one tonight to end a sequence of six home wins for BVB and extend their own winning streak to nine.
What’s next?
The chasing pack are in action next, with fourth placed Bayer Leverkusen hosting Wolfsburg tonight when a win will take them above RB Leipzig into third. Having just thumped Mainz away from home, Timo Werner scoring a hat-trick, Leipzig are at home to Hertha Berlin tomorrow.
And the SBOBET football team will be back with more previews and match action at the weekend when the top two will expect to pick up wins against two teams struggling at the wrong end of the league table.
Bayern are at home to relegation threatened Fortuna Dusseldorf on Saturday and then on Sunday Dortmund are away to bottom club SC Paderborn 04.
Favre’s team will fight to the end, but they have been severely wounded tonight.
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