Borussia Dortmund will play host to Bayern Munich in what promises to be an exciting clash in Tuesday’s edition of the Bundesliga.
The result of the encounter is expected to have a massive influence on the nature of the title race in the German top flight as only four points separate the league leaders and their second-placed rivals following the weekend round of matches.
Both clubs will head into the game with immense confidence after securing morale-boosting wins on Saturday: while the Bavarians established a 5-2 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt, their Dortmund rivals defeated Wolfsburg 2-0.
The highly-anticipated Der Klassiker will be played under unusual circumstances as the ongoing global crisis dictates that the game will take place in an empty Signal Iduna Park- in the absence of the impassioned supporters who have heightened the importance of the derby with their enthusiasm and dedication.
As we await the mouth-watering fixture, let us take a look at the five previous meetings between the two German football juggernauts:
#5 Bayern Munich 6-0 Dortmund (March 31, 2018)
In March 2018, Borussia Dortmund travelled to the Allianz Arena to face a Bayern Munich side whose chances of claiming a sixth consecutive Bundesliga title were temporarily put on hold when Schalke established a victory over Freiburg earlier in the day.
Despite being unable to seal their title at home against BVB, Jupp Heynckes’ men did not hesitate to annihilate their arch-rivals as they scored three goals in the first 23 minutes of the game alone.
Robert Lewandowski took just five minutes to give the Bavarians the lead as he scored the opener from a Thomas Muller pass. Franck Ribery then had a goal disallowed for offside before James Rodriguez directed David Alaba’s cutback to the back of the net. The game appeared all but finished when Muller volleyed a terrific cross from Rodriguez to make it 3-0.
The nightmare first half for Dortmund was, however, far from over as Ribery finally got himself a goal by netting home a powerful strike just before the break. The only thing that appeared close to a consolation for BVB came in the second half when Mario Gotze’s effort hit the post but even that was forgotten when Lewandowski completed the rout with an 87th-minute goal.
Bayern Munich went on to win their sixth straight Bundesliga title at the end of the season with 84 points.
#4 Borussia Dortmund 3-2 Bayern Munich (November 10, 2018)
In November 2018, Borussia Dortmund welcomed Bayern Munich to Signal Iduna Park in a game that saw the hosts complete a spectacular comeback to down their Bavarian rivals 3-2 in the Bundesliga.
BVB had a four-point lead over the reigning champions heading into the encounter but it certainly looked like the gap was set to be minimised when Robert Lewandowski came back to haunt his former club with a 26th-minute header from the edge of the six-yard box. The Dortmund giants appeared to be destined for a collapse as they struggled in the final third and registered only a single shot until halftime.
The scoreline remained 0-1 as the teams entered the second half of the game but Borussia Dortmund were now playing more aggressively and soon ended up with an equaliser from the penalty spot in the 49th minute, courtesy of Marco Reus. However, Bayern Munich retook the lead just four minutes later when Joshua Kimmich’s cross was converted from close range by none other than Lewandowski.
The Polish talisman then had a goal ruled out for offside before Reus once again equalised for the hosts by wonderfully finishing a Lukasz Piszczek cross. Paco Alcacer ultimately won it for the Ruhr giants as he came off the bench to chip Manuel Neuer with a ball from Axel Witsel. The Bavarians thought they equalised in the 94th minute with another potential Lewandowski hat-trick goal but it was correctly disallowed for offside.
That season, Borussia Dortmund squandered their chances of winning their first Bundesliga title since the 2011-12 campaign, finishing two points behind eventual winners Bayern Munich.
#3 Bayern Munich 5-0 Dortmund (April 6, 2019)
Perennial champions Bayern Munich snatched their place at the summit of the Bundesliga with a 5-0 mauling of Borussia Dortmund in April last year.
Lucien Favre’s men arrived at the Allianz Arena with a two-point lead at the top of the standings but the momentum of their title chase was ripped apart as they got shell-shocked by a merciless first-half display from their Bavarian rivals.
Mats Hummels opened the bank with a towering header early in the first half before Robert Lewandowski netted his 200th Bundesliga goal with a spectacular solo effort seven minutes later. The Dortmund giants struggled to handle the hosts’ relentless pressure throughout the opening half, forcing their goalkeeper Roman Burki to make a series of crucial saves to deny the likes of Hummels and Lewandowski.
However, the Swiss shot-stopper was soon beaten by Javi Martinez who pounced on a rebound to give his side a three-goal lead in just 40 minutes. This was followed by another goal from Serge Gnabry who headed Thomas Muller’s cross into the back of the net two minutes later.
BVB’s humiliation was then completed in the 89th minute as Lewandowski registered his 201st Bundesliga goal to cap a record-setting night as he became the first non-German player to notch 200 goals in the German top flight.
That season, Borussia Dortmund once again finished two points behind Bayern Munich, who won their seventh consecutive league title with 78 points.
#2 Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Bayern Munich (August 3, 2019)
Borussia Dortmund ended Bayern Munich’s dominance in the DFL-Supercup when they established a 2-0 victory over the Bavarians in the German season’s curtain-raiser in August last year.
Jadon Sancho, who had established himself as one of the best young talents in Europe, hogged the limelight as he grabbed a goal and an assist to help BVB to the victory.
The Dortmund giants were largely dominant in the first half but did not find the back of the net until the 48th minute when Sancho made a fine solo run to set up Paco Alcacer for the opener.
BVB goalkeeper Marwin Hitz made some phenomenal saves against the likes of Leon Goretzka and Kingsley Coman to deny his opponents an equaliser. Sancho then secured the win with a low strike through Manuel Neuer’s legs following one of his trademark runs.
The win saw Borussia Dortmund win their sixth German Super Cup, made better by the fact that they won against their arch-rivals at Signal Iduna Park.
#1 Bayern Munich 4-0 Dortmund (November 19, 2019)
Bayern Munich made relatively light work of Borussia Dortmund in the first Der Klassiker of the Bundesliga this season. The reigning champions condemned their rivals to a sixth consecutive league defeat at the Allianz Arena with to get their title defence back on track after suffering a humiliating 5-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt the previous week.
Robert Lewandowski predictably scored the opening goal as he headed home from a Benjamin Pavard cross in the first half. The Bavarians pushed their momentum after the break as Serge Gnabry finished from a Thomas Muller cross to double his side’s lead.
Paco Alcacer came close to minimising the deficit for Dortmund before Lewandowski netted his second goal of the night with a pass from Muller, who became the first player to reach 100 assists in the Bundesliga since the 2004-05 season. What made the inevitable defeat worse was the fact that Mats Hummels turned into his own net to conclude a discouraging 3-0 loss to his former club.
Bayern Munich are currently four points clear at the top of the table and second-placed Borussia Dortmund will certainly be looking for revenge when they face them at Signal Iduna Park on Tuesday night.
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