🇩🇪 Mainz sink 10-man Dortmund; Bayern labour in win at St. Pauli | OneFootball

Matchday 10 of the 2024-25 Bundesliga season may have proven decisive in the race for the Meisterschale as both Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund travelled away from home.

Here is how the two rivals faired this evening.

Bayern labour in win at St. Pauli

Scorer: Musiala 22′

Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich continued their revenge campaign in 2024-25 under Vincent Kompany with a laboured 1-0 win at St.Pauli.

Jamal Musiala set Bayern off and running in the 22nd minute with an absolute screamer from just shy of 30 yards from goal, though St. Pauli shot-stopper Nikola Vasilj arguably could have done better to deny the German wunderkind.

St. Pauli did well to battle in neutral spaces in midfield to stifle Bayern enough in the opening stanza while looking to spring on the counter but lacked just enough cutting edge in the final third to truly threaten the Bavarian giants.

It was hardly a prototypical Bayern performance on the night, however, with Kompany’s men struggling to turn their dominance in possession into a far more comfortable advantage on the scoresheet.

The aforementioned Musiala really should have doubled Bayern’s advantage on the night to put them out of sight in the final moments, but could only blaze a close-range effort over the bar.

Still, Bayern’s strong start to life under Kompany continued in the wake of a 2023-24 campaign that was deemed disastrous by many in and around the club.

Mainz sink 10-man Dortmund along the Rhine

Scorers: Lee 36′, Burkardt 45+3′, Nebel 54′; Guirassy 40′. Red: Can 27′

Borussia Dortmund’s season continues to frustrate after a difficult 3-1 defeat at Mainz, their fifth in just eleven Hinrunde matches.

Veteran midfielder Emre Can set the night off on the wrong foot for Die Schwarzgelben when he was given his marching orders in the 27th minute after being given a straight red.

Head trainer Nuri Şahin will no doubt lament the sending-off as well, as Dortmund were already scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to defensive cover, and now will struggle to find a tactical solution for the German international.

Mainz would pounce on the one-man advantage nine minutes later through Lee Jae-sung, gifting Bo Henriksen’s man a vital first-half lead.

That did not last long, however, with a Serhou Guirassy penalty leveling matters minutes later after the Guinean striker drew a foul in the area, bagging his sixth Bundesliga goal in the process.

But Die Nullfünfer would restore their one-goal lead just before the interval through Jonathan Burkardt, who converted from close range after Danny Da Costa turned provider.

The second half would see Mainz extend their lead to a two-goal advantage when Paul Nebel converted from inside the penalty area in the 54th minute to sink a foundering Dortmund who continue to be painfully inconsistent this season.

With tonight’s loss, one that saw Dortmund manage just two shots through 90 minutes, supporters have to wonder just how long Şahin has left and if he will even make it to the Winterpause.