Bundesliga Klassiker: Bayern Munich vs. Borussia Dortmund Preview, Odds, Predictions

Klassiker, the matchup between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, is the most important game in German football. With the Bavarians and the Millionaires now sitting atop the Bundesliga, this might have a massive impact on the championship battle. Bayern, who changed managers before the international break, is in worse form than Dortmund, who is visiting Munich. All this promises an interesting event.

Preview

Bayern Munich (-200) trails Borussia by two points and chose to switch coaches last Friday. Julian Nagelsmann was relieved of his duties, and Thomas Tuchel stepped in to start a new era at the Allianz Arena. Bayern will strive to win the Bundesliga and the Champions League under their new manager, who previously worked for Dortmund, PSG, and Chelsea.

The 2-1 loss in the derby against Leverkusen was probably the final straw for Bayern’s administration, who opted to replace Nagelsmann with Tuchel.

The Bavarians are currently riding a four-game victory streak in all competitions and have not suffered a failure in their last 17 home games. Bayern scored 13 goals during this winning streak and allowed only three, posting three clean sheets. 

After the end of the World Cup, Borussia (+400) hasn’t lost a single Bundesliga game. Chelsea beat them in the Champions League at Stamford, but Edin Terzic’s team had won ten consecutive matches across all competitions prior to it. After that one, Dortmund played 2-2 against Schalke in the Riverside Derby, indicating that there might be some sort of a mild crisis in the team. Yet that wasn’t the case.

The Millionaires humiliated FC Koln in the latest Bundesliga challenge. Borussia crushed the Billy Goats 6-1, pounding the rivals throughout all 90 minutes.

Borussia netted twice on five of their last seven away games, and they have tremendous offensive potential despite the constant injuries of their forwards. The game in Munich will be an essential test to see if Borussia has championship-caliber talent.

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As said, Tuchel is now the new head coach of the Bavarian team. We are yet to see whether this was a smart move of the champs. Musiala is doubtful; Hernandez and Neuer are out. 

Dortmund has a hospital in its training center. Though, Schlotterbeck, Bynoe-Gittens and Ozcan are out. All the other players who were doubtful at the start of the week, like Brandt, Moukoko, Kamara, etc, will be ready to play on Saturday. 

Head to Head

Borussia hosted Bayern in the previous encounter, and we saw a 2-2 draw. It was an enjoyable affair with lots of action on both ends of the field. The Bavarians had won their previous eight matches in a row against Dortmund, and the last seven had at least four goals scored by both teams.

Prediction

We have no doubts this should be another exciting and efficient meeting between the two German powerhouses. Our pick here is over 2.5 goals and both teams scoring with the odds at -200. Bayern is a favorite, but we don’t want to risk anything with Tuchel making a debut on the bench in the most important clash of the season.

Pick: Both teams to score and over 2.5 goals -200

Here are more preview for this weekend’s games:

• Napoli vs. AC Milan
• Newcastle vs. Manchester United
• Manchester City vs. Liverpool