Bayern Munich Hits Form at the Right Time as Borussia Dortmund Starts to Falter
Bayern Munich's resurgence under Jupp Heynckes could not have come at a better time as title rivals Borussia Dortmund begin to stutter after a blistering start to the season.
Before the weekend fixtures played out, many believed that Hannover 96 versus Borussia Dortmund would be a simple task for der BVB and that Bayern Munich's game against Leipzig would be anything but simple, however the majority of us were mistaken as roles were reversed.
BVB slumped to their second defeat of the season against a newly promoted Hannover side who on the day deserved the victory, while later on that same day Bayern cruised past a Leipzig side which were a shadow of the team that dismantled Dortmund two weeks ago.
Image by Glenn Doyle
For der BVB, their season began to unravel back in September. While everything seemed rosy for them in the league, the Champions League match against Spurs seemed to showcase the best way in which to defeat the Schwarze-Gelbe. Against a Spurs team low on confidence and in new surroundings, Dortmund took the initiative but soon their style of play backfired. Upcoming opponents studied the game and saw that the way to defeat Dortmund was to play on the counter-attack.
With Bosz's style of play, the majority of the team enters the opposition half, leaving only the two centre halves and the goalkeeper to defend against any counter attacks. Defensive blunders and goalkeeping errors have not helped Dortmund along the way, but it is clear to see that what many thought was a flawless system at the beginning of the season seems to be anything but flawless at the minute. The home loss to Leipzig was a perfect example of this, which was Dortmund's first league defeat at home in 41 competitive games, an incredible record.
However, some hope was given during the week against a third tier Magdeburg side, which Dortmund were expected to win. However, the weekend loss to Hannover and the manner of how they lost, with another goalkeeping error to give away a penalty and another sending off in Dan Axel-Zagadou, to put alongside Sokratis' red card against Leipzig two weeks prior, means that Dortmund find themselves in somewhat of a slump.
And things don't get easier for them, with the visit of a resurgent Bayern on Saturday evening and the thought of a six point gap opening if they were defeated, der BVB are in need of a big win to reignite their season which promised so much only a few weeks ago.
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As for Bayern, well things couldn't get any better for the Bavarians. They are back on the summit of the Bundesliga, three clean sheets in a row and their top players are hitting form at the right moment and it seems Bayern will be favorites for the title once again this season. The sacking of Carlo Ancelotti was not a massive shock to the world of football.
The aftermath of the sacking was very interesting however, mostly down to the actions of the players not only on the pitch but off it as well. Along with the step up in performances and results, a quote from a certain top player at the club stating that training was mundane and that they didn't enjoy what their coach had to offer was somewhat of a surprise given the man in charge, not forgetting that this man had won Champions Leagues and titles in many leagues across Europe.
The Daily Mail, reported Thomas Muller's quotes which were very interesting to read.
"We will have a good training again", said Muller.
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The use of the word again is a sly dig at his old boss who he claimed should not be a scapegoat for the poor results, but the truth points towards the contrary.
A fresh start was needed and so they brought back a familiar face to install a happiness around the camp and to show the world what Bayern are really capable of, this man was Jupp Heynckes, He is loved by all at Bayern, mostly down to his incredible 2013 season in which Bayern won the treble.
Not only that, but the players love the manager and that is important. They trust the manager, which is one thing that they didn't have in Ancelotti by the end of his era as manager. As for Bayern now, they face an out of favor Dortmund side who haven't won a Bundesliga match since September.
The match up at the weekend will be fascinating to watch, many questions come to mind of what will happen, will Bosz change his style of play to accommodate Bayern or will they try and match them like they did unsuccessfully to Real Madrid and Leipzig? Will Bayern continue their good form under Heynckes? We will find out on Saturday at 5.30pm.
