Honorary President Uli Hoeneß watched with slumped shoulders in the stands as the duped Bayern stars went to their fans with looks of consternation. In the midst of BVB’s frenzy of victory, the only thing left for the Munich team on this bitter Clásico evening was the realization: what was probably their very last chance for the championship was lost.
The day after Xabi Alonso committed to another year at Bayer Leverkusen, the Munich team had to let the leaders pull away to 13 points with a 0-2 (0-1) win against Borussia Dortmund.
“Completely frustrating, completely inexplicable,” said Bayern’s Joshua Kimmich on Sky. “Against BVB you don’t really need anyone to motivate you, you have to run yourself the day before. We didn’t show that at all.” In the second half you “almost had the feeling that it was about nothing, it was a friendly game,” added the national player. “Regardless of the situation in the table, this should never, ever happen to us – and especially not in a home game against Dortmund.”
With seven games still to play, winning the national title again is only theoretically possible for Bayern. Karim Adeyemi (10th minute) and Julian Ryerson (83rd) made the guests celebrate their first away win in the Bundesliga in Munich in a decade. Important points in the fight for participation in the Champions League also meant a liberation for coach Edin Terzic. This was particularly thanks to the outstanding classic record holder Mats Hummels.
BVB gains self-confidence
“It’s three points in the end, but of course it’s not easy in Munich. That gives a really good feeling,” said BVB sports director Sebastian Kehl. “This is a good start to this important phase.” BVB still has “a few tasks” ahead of them. Hummels said: “I think we have done a very good job as a group.”
BVB can look forward to the premier class competition Atlético Madrid with further self-confidence after their fifth competitive win in a row. A reunion with Bayern on June 1st at the final in London is possible. Without the injured captain Manuel Neuer, the Munich team had to deal with another title setback at the start of groundbreaking weeks with the premier class quarter-final against Arsenal FC.
As soon as he arrived at the stadium, Thomas Tuchel had to digest “a little dampener in his mood” due to Leverkusen’s turnaround in the 2-1 win against Hoffenheim on his one-year anniversary as Bayern coach. The big one followed a little later in front of 75,000 spectators on the pitch: After captain’s representative Thomas Müller lost the ball, Borussia quickly switched gears. Julian Brandt’s deliberate pass gave Adeyemi a surprising lead. New representative Sven Ulreich got a shot, but he couldn’t prevent the goal.
Kane misses a great chance to make it 1-1
On Leverkusen’s celebration weekend, when the Werkself turned around a 0-1 deficit with two late goals the day after Alonso’s yes, Bayern lacked the final luck at the front. In contrast to the relegation candidates Mainz (8:1) and Darmstadt (5:2), Harry Kane, who had become fit after ankle problems, missed a mega chance with his head, which he usually always takes (23rd). BVB defense chief Hummels spectacularly cleared Eric Dier’s header from close range in the air with a kung-fu jump (35′).
Shortly after the break, Bayern were able to thank Ulreich for brilliantly thwarting a top chance from Felix Nmecha (53′) and also being there to beat Hummels (58′). The Munich team only got up to speed late against cleverly defending Dortmund. During the attacks, Jamal Musiala and his colleagues, who were repeatedly disturbed, often acted too complicatedly. There was also a lack of speed and precision.
Coman brings momentum, Kane’s goal is disallowed
In his 50th game as Bayern coach, Tuchel changed his entire offensive line after an hour, with the exception of Kane. This brought a lot of momentum to the offensive, especially thanks to the returnee Kingsley Coman. But Kane still lacked efficiency, as with his header (67th). Kobel representative Alexander Meyer made a brilliant save against Coman (75′). Ryerson increased Munich’s constant pressure in the final phase. The bitter punchline for Kane: His supposed goal to make it 1-2 didn’t count because it was offside.
The top Bundesliga game took place under increased police presence after a suspected threat was reported. According to its own information, the Federal Ministry of the Interior had no concrete indications of a threat situation.
