DER KLASSIKER :
A TACTICAL BREAKDOWN
Ahead of
Der Klassiker on Saturday, Bundesliga leaders FC Bayern München's lead on second-placed Borussia Dortmund has been
whittled down to five points - their smallest lead since Matchday 16.
Why might that gap expand or contract this weekend?
Aubameyang's pace and Bayern's makeshift defence
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has proven a dangerous proposition for many a defence this season, scoring 22 goals in the Bundesliga. Add in his four assists and the African Player of the Year has been responsible for a BVB goal within every 77 minutes he has played. Although his finishing has improved enormously since shifting from the wing to centre forward, the Gabon striker has been clocked covering 30 metres faster than Usain Bolt, and his turn of pace remains his most dangerous asset.
Bayern may have only conceded a league-low 13 goals this season, but with
Jerome Boateng,
Javi Martinez and
Holger Badstuber injured, Pep Guardiola has had to field midfielders
David Alaba and
Joshua Kimmich at the heart of his defence in recent weeks. Kimmich's Bundesliga career is only eight games old, and whilst Alaba might be quicker than any of the aforementioned centre backs, he is not quick enough to recover should Aubemeyang catch one or both of them out of position on the counter-attack. "We can't stop Aubameyang one-on-one," said Bayern coach Pep Guardiola. "We'll have to play as a team."
Bayern's wingers and Dortmund's reluctant full-backs
Whilst injuries have denied Bayern
Arjen Robben and
Franck Ribery in tandem for much of this season,
Douglas Costa and
Kingsley Coman have deputised with aplomb. One of the reasons 'CoCo' has proven every bit as dangerous as 'Robbery' is that each player is expected to interpret the position in the same way - when Bayern are in possession, if the winger is on the opposite flank to the ball he must stay there rather than drift inside to get involved in the build-up play. Guardiola once substituted Thierry Henry for failing to respect that point when at Barcelona, despite the Frenchman scoring as a result. The tactic may leave Costa or Coman bored for a few minutes, but it means their teammates always have the option of switching play if the midfield gets too busy.
This could prove particularly telling against Dortmund. Thomas Tuchel has seemed unsure on which player to start at left-back in recent weeks, with
Marcel Schmelzer and
Erik Durm alternating. Both prefer to overlap than to defend - the latter grabbed his first goal of the season in
Wednesday's 2-0 win at SV Darmstadt 98 - and this could leave space for the Bayern wingmen, whomever of them plays.
Matchday 25 - Match facts
Bayern are just five points clear of Dortmund – their smallest lead since Matchday 16.
Dortmund have more points than any other side in second place at this stage of a Bundesliga campaign. With their 57 points, BVB would have been top in 45 of the previous 52 Bundesliga seasons after Matchday 24.
Dortmund have yet to lose a game in 2016 (nine wins, one draw) and are on a seven-game winning streak in all competitions.
Pep Guardiola and Thomas Tuchel have the best win records with Bayern and Dortmund respectively of all coaches in Bundesliga history to have overseen more than five games.
This season Dortmund boast the best home record in club history (ten wins, one draw). Their last home defeat came against Bayern (0-1 on 4 April 2015).
Bayern won the reverse fixture 5-1 and since that fixture, Dortmund have picked up two points more than the Bavarians.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored at least one goal in each of his Bundesliga home games this season. the Gabon international can match a league record held jointly by Gerd Müller and Jupp Heynckes with another goal.
The Bundesliga's two leading scorers - Lewandowski (23 goals) and Aubameyang (22) - have scored 45 between them. Those returns are more than any other two players after 24 games in the past 42 years (Müller and Heynckes also had 45 in 1973/74.)
A total of 18 of the last 22 Bundesliga titles have gone to either Dortmund or Bayern.
Possible line-ups
Dortmund: Bürki - Piszczek, Bender, Hummels, Schmelzer - Weigl - Gündogan, Kagawa - Mkhitaryan, Reus - Aubameyang
Absentees: Sokratis (adductor)
Bayern: Neuer - Lahm, Kimmich, Alaba, Juan Bernat - Xabi Alonso - Robben, Müller, Thiago, Douglas Costa - Lewandowski
Absentees: Badstuber (ankle), Boateng (adductor), Javi Martinez (lig
History
Thomas Müller and Robert Lewandowski scored a brace apiece as Bayern extended their lead at the top of the Bundesliga standings to seven points with an emphatic 5-1 win over Dortmund in Der Klassiker.
courtesy bundesliga.
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