Bayern Munich travel to Borussia Dortmund in need of a good result

Bayern Munich gear up for a season-defining clash when they face Borussia Dortmund in this weekend’s Der Klassiker.

The biggest fixture of the Bundesliga takes place this weekend. Bayern Munich travel to Dortmund, where they’ll face the league leaders. The defending champions have gathered momentum since the last international break, and they’ll be hoping to head into the next one on a high note.

Bayern have struggled this season under Niko Kovac. After a good start to the campaign, they have dropped points consistently in the last couple months. They were held for a 1-1 draw by Freiburg in their last Bundesliga outing and are currently third in the Bundesliga. A win on Saturday will reduce Dortmund’s lead at the top to just one point.

Borussia Dortmund, on the other hand, are flying high in the Bundesliga. They are yet to taste defeat in the league and are averaging three goals per game. Dortmund have suffered several defeats in Der Klassiker throughout past few seasons, but this time they come into the fixtures as favorites. Winning against the Bavarian giants will make BVB firm title favorites for the season.

Team News

Bayern Munich will be without Arjen Robben for this game. The Dutchman picked up a minor knock earlier this week and did not travel with the team to Dortmund. James Rodriguez is set to be fit after recovering from a minor calf problem which kept him out of a couple of training sessions this week.

Thiago Alcantara will miss Der Klassiker, as he still has a few weeks left in his recovery process. Kingsley Coman started running earlier this week, but this match comes too early for the Frenchmen. Corentin Tolisso is the only long-term absentee for Bayern Munich.

Predicted XI

Niko Kovac will not be able to field his strongest starting lineup due to injury issues. The available squad is still good enough to get a win against Borussia Dortmund though. Manuel Neuer will feature in goal, eager to keep a clean sheet in the crunch tie. Mats Hummels will partner Niklas Sule in the heart of defense against his former side. Joshua Kimmich and David Alaba will slot in the right-back and left-back positions respectively.

Javi Martinez will play the pivotal role of holding midfielder against Dortmund. The Spaniard will have to shield the defense perfectly to nullify Dortmund’s devastating attack. Leon Goretzka will provide dynamism to the midfield by slotting in the box-to-box midfield role.

James Rodriguez is Bayern’s most creative midfielder, and he will start in his favored attacking midfield position on Saturday. Thomas Muller is likely to feature on the right flank in place of Arjen Robben. Franck Ribery delivered a decent performance against AEK Athens on Wednesday and will keep his place in the starting lineup against Dortmund. Robert Lewandowski will lead the line for Bayern against his former club.

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Opposition Focus

Borussia Dortmund have been in fine form this season. Lucien Favre is getting the best out of his young attacking players, who are scoring goals for fun. Dortmund will allow Bayern to have possession and attempt to hit them on the counter-attack. Bayern have struggled defensively this season and Dortmund have the quality to punish their defensive errors.

Jadon Sancho has been the star player for Dortmund this season. The English youngster has a terrific eye for the killer pass in the final third. Paco Alcacer, meanwhile, has consistently found himself at the end of Sancho’s passes in the final third. The Spaniard is the top scorer in the Bundesliga with seven goals. Marco Reus has also chipped in with six Bundesliga goals this season. It will be an ultimate test of resilience and concentration of Bayern’s defense on Saturday.

Next. Hoeness: Bayern Munich are the underdogs in Der Klassiker. dark

Prediction

Borussia Dortmund 2-3 Bayern Munich

Borussia Dortmund have been scoring freely this season, so I expect them to get past Bayern’s leaky defense. However, Bayern Munich will show the same resilience that has helped them grind out wins recently and narrowly overcome their hosts.