t-online columnist Stefan Effenberg sees a great opportunity for Bayern in the classic against BVB – and is surprised about Dortmund. A club could benefit from a certain result.
I’m looking forward to it just as much as millions of other football fans: Bayern Munich against Borussia Dortmund, the top Bundesliga game on Saturday. First against second in the table, the German champions against perhaps their biggest rivals in Germany.
I think for BVB – despite their current strong form – the main thing will be to not lose in Munich. They don’t necessarily have to win – but they can’t really afford to lose. Because then the gap to Bayern would increase to seven points. That would mean: Dortmund would have to hope for three defeats by the record champions over the course of the season – that seems difficult if not impossible given Bayern’s current condition.
And the people of Munich also know that: in a direct clash on matchday seven, they could pull away from their toughest rivals. A victory in a prestigious duel that shows the limits of their arch-rivals – there can be no greater motivation for Bayern. That would also be a clear signal not only to Dortmund, but to the entire Bundesliga.
An important factor for the duel will also be: Can both Bayern coach Vincent Kompany and BVB coach Niko Kovač have access to all of their players? The Munich team had to release twelve professionals for the international break, Dortmund even 15. That’s what matters: Will everyone come back healthy and fit? Things are looking good at the moment, Serhou Guirassy, who was recently injured, has also reported ready for action at BVB.
Incidentally, Niko and his team have had a very impressive run: Dortmund are still unbeaten after nine competitive games this season, and there has only been one defeat in the last 20 games across the season. What’s more: the team is currently playing so stable and consistent – this is not the BVB as we knew it in previous years.
Because the last seasons of the “black and yellow” can be summarized like this: pretty weak in the first half of the season, extremely strong in the second half of the season. In 2024/25 they finished the first half of the season in tenth place – but were in second place in the second half of the season. Likewise 2023/24 (5th place/3rd place) or 2022/23 (5th place/1st place).
Despite the good performances so far, I am sure that one Bundesliga game will still hurt Dortmund: the unnecessary 3:3 on the first matchday after a 3:1 lead at FC St. Pauli. If they had saved the victory that they already thought was certain over time, they would now be only two points behind Bayern. That could even be decisive in the end – and that would be very bitter for BVB.