Bayern Munich 3-1 Borussia Dortmund: High-Flying Reds Too Much for Dortmund

Posted Sunday, February 14, 2010 by Goal.com

After Mohamed Zidan gave Dortmund an early lead, Bayern stormed back with three unanswered goals...

Bayern coach Louis van Gaal retained the squad that has featured in nearly every part of his team's impressive winning streak, but opted to promote Thomas Mueller to the position of striker, allowing Franck Ribery to play in left midfield at the expense of Ivica Olic, who had to settle for a spot on the bench.

Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp countered Van Gaal's aggressive stance by fielding his usual 4-2-3-1 setup, with no surprises in the starting eleven.

At the start of the match, Dortmund were very aggressive in attack, and carved out three clear scoring chances in the first five minutes.

After four minute, Mohamed Zidan played Sven Bender into the penalty area and the 20-year old's shot was only stopped by the outstretched foot of Martin Demichelis. From the resulting corner, Bender took a free header on goal, but this time Mark van Bommel was available to clear off the line.

Not discouraged by their inability to convert on their previous opportunities, Dortmund pressed forward a third time which was, as the proverb says, a "charm." Zidan pounced on a Daniel van Buyten error, was pushed by the Belgian defender, but never gave up on the play and slid to strike in an unstoppable shot at the near post.

After the opener, Dortmund played somewhat more cautiously, but maintained utmost defensive intensity, even among their attacking players. Bayern saw much more of the ball, but looked susceptible at the back and had a very difficult time carving out holes in a well-organized Dortmund defense.

Instead, Dortmund remained solid at the back and dangerous going forward. Kevin Grosskreutz came close to doubling his team's advantage on 18 minutes, but Butt parried and the ball was eventually cleared to safety.

On the other end, Bayern's attack began to gel. Mario Gomez brilliantly turned his defender, but was dispossessed by three quarters of the Dortmund back line as he reached a shooting position. Instead, it would be a stroke of luck that proved the charm for Bayern; following a corner, Mark van Bommel unleashed a piledriver shot from distance, and the ball deflected off Lucas Barrios and into the net.

After the equalizer, Bayern continued to press forward, but Dortmund countered with resilient defense. In the opening minutes, Ribery had had success in creating space going forward, but Dortmund winger Kuba dropped back to provide excellent defensive cover and, given his pace, remained a threat on the break.

Bayern countered Dortmund's policy of using defensive wingers by often stacking Ribery and Arjen Robben on the same flank, but the guests remained unshakeable at the back.

With time running out in the first half, Lucas Barrios had a pair of gilt-edged chances, but saw both blocked by Butt. On the first occasion, the Argentine striker dribbled past Martin Demichelis, only to leave the ball slightly too far forward and see Butt snuff it out immediately. A minute later, Barrios again found himself with a one-on-one against Butt, but as before, the Bayern goalkeeper was quick to run out and block the Argentine's effort.

After 45 minutes, the two teams entered the half in a deadlock, with neither side able to be fully content with the outcome of the first period.

Five minutes into the second half, Bayern once again benefitted from a stroke of luck. After Demichelis appeared to commit a foul, Mueller played a clever ball through to Ribery, who crossed to the unmarked Robben. The Dutchman, who may have been offside, tapped in to put Bayern ahead.

Bayern's second goal forced Dortmund to commit more offensively, and as a result, the hosts were able to create space on the counterattack. The Bavarians were not immediately able to make the best use of their space, and Dortmund remained threatening, especially from set pieces.

Shortly after the hour mark, the visitors had two good chances to draw level, but Butt parried the first out for a corner, and Barrios' header a moment later was cleared to safety.

The visitors would rue their missed chances moments later, when Ribery played a fine ball through to Gomez on the left channel. The German international held off his defender, cut inside, and fired home from a tough angle to make the score 3-1.

As full time approached, Dortmund became increasingly urgent in their attack, and the Bayern counterattack looked to exploit their opponents weaknesses. At the same time, the visitors had occasional opportunities, and once again forced Butt to make a good reaction save on 78 minutes, as Grosskreutz fired on goal.

At the opposite end, Gomez passed on a chance when he had only goalkeeper Marc Ziegler to beat, and Schweinsteiger hit the bar with his header from a corner.

After an uneventful spell of injury time, the final whistle blew and Bayern drew level once again with Leverkusen at the top of the league table.