Borussia Dortmund is set to host the reigning Bundesliga champions, Bayern Munich, for the latest edition of the highly-anticipated Der Klassiker at Westfalenstadion this evening.
In the recent DFB-Pokal’s second round, both teams had contrasting results. BVB secured a narrow victory over Hoffenheim, while Bayern suffered a shocking exit at the hands of third-tier Saarbrucken.
Borussia Dortmund extended their unbeaten streak to eight matches across all competitions by claiming a 1-0 home win over Hoffenheim in the DFB-Pokal this past Wednesday.
This came just two days after their thrilling 3-3 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. The win, secured by a first-half goal from club legend Marco Reus, earned them a spot in the DFB-Pokal’s last 16.
Edin Terzic’s team now shifts their focus back to the Bundesliga, where they currently hold the fourth position in the standings. They have won six and drawn three of their first nine matches this season. Dortmund has made an unbeaten start to a campaign in their first nine fixtures only twice before, in the 2002-03 and 2018-19 seasons.
Notably, Dortmund has maintained an exceptional home record in the Bundesliga, going on a 20-game unbeaten run at Westfalenstadion dating back to August 2022, with 17 victories. One of the three occasions they dropped points at home was a 2-2 draw against Bayern in October of the previous year.
The draw is the only instance in the last 10 meetings where Dortmund avoided defeat against Bayern. Their last Bundesliga loss against any opponent, whether home or away, was a 4-2 defeat to Bayern in April.
Bayern Munich, on the other hand, experienced a drastic turn of events just three days after their 8-0 thrashing of SV Darmstadt 98 in the Bundesliga.
They suffered a humiliating 2-1 loss to 3. Liga side Saarbrucken in the DFB-Pokal. Despite having 75% possession and 18 shots on goal, Bayern’s lead, courtesy of Thomas Muller’s goal, was nullified by Patrick Sontheimer just before halftime. Marcel Gaus netted a dramatic 96th-minute winner for Saarbrucken, leading to Bayern’s elimination in the second round for the third time in the last four seasons.
Bayern’s sporting director, Christoph Freund, criticized their “unacceptable” performance, while head coach Thomas Tuchel denied claims of arrogance or underestimation of their third-tier opponents, instead pointing to a lack of necessary intensity.
With less than three days to prepare, Bayern faces an in-form Dortmund side in the 134th edition of Der Klassiker, the most-played fixture in German professional football. Bayern has won 66 times in total, compared to BVB’s 32 victories.
Sitting second in the Bundesliga table, Bayern could find themselves five points behind the leaders, Bayer Leverkusen, if Leverkusen wins against Hoffenheim in the earlier kickoff. Bayern will enter the match with confidence, having won 11 of their last 13 Bundesliga encounters with Dortmund, scoring at least three goals on 10 occasions.
