Dominant Bayern held by Dortmund

FC Bayern were held to a 2-2 draw by Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Munich were the dominant side throughout, but Maximilian Beier handed Borussia the lead early in the second half. Raphaël Guerreiro and Serge Gnabry turned things around off the bench before Waldemar Anton levelled the scores again in a very entertaining game.

The Bavarians started with Jonas Urbig in goal and Konrad Laimer, Minjae Kim, Eric Dier and Josip Stanišić in a back four. Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka anchored a midfield featuring Michael Olise, Thomas Müller and Leroy Sané, with Harry Kane up front. Guerreiro, Aleksandar Pavlović, Gnabry and Kingsley Coman took over from Kim, Goretzka, Sané and Müller in the second half.

No goals

The pattern of the game was soon established with Bayern in the driving seat and Dortmund looking to strike on the break. An Olise effort was blocked before Julian Brandt hit the side-netting at the other end. Olise too hit the side-netting and goalkeeper Gregor Kobel denied Sané and Kane, with Olise putting a volley wide from close range.

Vincent Kompany’s men saw a number of shots blocked before a Kimmich cross found the unmarked Stanišić, who headed over. Kobel saved again from Olise and Kane as and the contest remained goalless at half-time.

Thrilling second half

Borussia scored out of the blue when Julian Ryerson’s cross invited Beier to head in after the restart. Anton almost put through his own goal when he tried to intercept a Guerreiro cross, the ball hitting the underside of the crossbar. Kane flashed an effort wide, but Gnabry soon sidestepped a number of defenders driving into the box and found Müller, who invited Guerreiro to crash home.

Gnabry handed Bayern the lead when he crowned a fine solo run with a precise finish. Kane kept Kobel busy, but Dortmund levelled the scores when Urbig parried Serhou Guirassy’s acrobatic effort from a corner and Anton was on hand to mop up. Kobel saved from Guerreiro and Kane, with the latter hitting the side-netting as Bayern pushed for a winner but lacked the final ball. A deflected Carney Chukwuemeka shot went just wide and a Pascal Groß effort landed on the roof of the net before a Kimmich shot drifted wide. Olise miscued a volley in the dying seconds as Bayern and Dortmund shared the spoils in Der Klassiker.

The result means Bayern have 69 points from 29 matches, six clear of Bayer Leverkusen. The Bavarians will be back in action on Wednesday when they travel to face Inter Milan in the Champions League quarter-final return leg.

Live match report for fcbayern.com by Greg Salmen