PLAYER RATINGS | Bayern Munich 2-2 Borussia Dortmund | OneFootball

After Bayer Leverkusen dropped points against Union Berlin, Bayern Munich were given the perfect chance to extend their lead at the top to eight points.

The best way to describe the first half performance from Dortmund – vibes.

Bayern were very much in control for the entirety of the first half, and Dortmund rode their luck and also needed Gregor Kobel to step up and make several saves. Dortmund very clearly had no clear game plan or any idea how they could attack Bayern and actually give themselves a chance at scoring. The best chances of the first half fell to Michael Olise – saved by Kobel, Harry Kane – saved by Kobel, Josip Stanisic – headed over the bar.

In the second half, the game descended into chaos. First, Dortmund open the scoring from an unlikely counter-attack when Maximilian Beier outjumped Min-Jae Kim for the ball. After opening the scoring. Dortmund had several other chances to even double their lead but were not clinical enough.

Dortmund then proceeded to do the most Dortmund thing possible when, within five minutes, they were 2-1 down after Vincent Kompany’s substitutes stepped up. A great run from Serge Gnabry was finished off by ex-Dortmunder Raphaël Guerreiro to make it 1-0, before Gnabry then went on another slaoming run and finished the move to make it 2-1. Dortmund then looked on the ropes. However, the game would have another twist in its tale when a Dortmund corner is played in and after bouncing around a great piece of skill (a double touch bicycle kick!) from Serhou Guirassy landed into the path of Waldemar Anton, who made it 2-2. Pascal Groß had the best chance to win it for Dortmund when his chipped effort hit the roof of the net. While Michael Olise had a chance from point-blank range to win right at the end of the game, but hit the side netting.

Overall, Dortmund will be the team happiest with the draw, as in the first half, they could very well have been 3-0 down if it were not for luck and Gregor Kobel. The point is not ideal in their pursuit of European football, but the performance should be a positive as in the Bundesliga, Dortmund are now unbeaten in three games.

In terms of the title, nothing changes. Bayern had the chance to extend their lead at the top to eight points but were unable to. Leverkusen will be rueing the missed opportunity, once again. Bayern’s remaining Bundesliga games are against Heidenheim (A), Mainz (H), Leipzig (A), Gladbach (H), and Hoffenheim (A). However, the intensity of the game this evening may impact their ability to come back against Inter in midweek.

This was also the first truly exciting ‘Der Klassiker’ in a while. The game had lost its aura in recent seasons due to the fact that Dortmund would always wilt at the prospect of facing Bayern, and it was so heavily one-sided. However, the past three games have shown that the game still has some competitive edge to it, when Dortmund have nothing significant to play for…

Bayern Munich:

Jonas Urbig (5) Konrad Laimer (5), Eric Dier (5), Min-Jae Kim (4), Josip Stanišić (6) Joshua Kimmich (5), Leon Goretzka (5) Michael Olise (6), Thomas Müller (6), Leroy Sané (5) Harry Kane (5)

Others: Raphaël Guerreiro (6), Serge Gnabry (7), Aleksandar Pavlovic (5), Kingsley Coman (-)

Borussia Dortmund:

Gregor Kobel (7), Niklas Süle (6), Waldemar Anton (6), Emre Can (6), Julian Ryerson (5), Sahil Özcan (5), Pascal Groß (5), Daniel Svensson (5), Julian Brandt (5), Maximilian Beier (7), Serhou Guirassy (6)

Others: Carney Chukwuemeka (6), Felix Nmecha (6), Ramy Bensebaini (-), Karim Adeyemi (-)

GGFN Man of the Match: Gregor Kobel (7)

Granted, he did flap at a cross that nearly resulted in a goal, but the Swiss put in a commanding performance, making nine saves to keep Dortmund in the game. Kobel played a big role in keeping Dortmund in the game in the first half; without him, die Schwarzgelben would have comfortably lost this.

GGFN | Jack Meenan