It's time for the next round of Der Klassiker: on Saturday at 18:30 CET, FC Bayern and Borussia Dortmund lock horns for the 134th time since the formation of the Bundesliga – the most-played fixture in German professional football. In recent years, the balance of power has clearly been on one side in this long-standing rivalry, as a look at the facts and figures shows:
Bayern's streak against BVB
Bayern have not lost any of their previous 10 competitive games against BVB – and won nine of them. The German record champions have only been on a better run against the Black and Yellows once: from 1998 to 2002, it was 11 matches without defeat. With that the Munich men have also extended their impressive overall record against Dortmund: in 133 meetings, FCB have come out on top 66 times, BVB just 32.
… and a goal record
The Reds have also scored at least one goal in each of their last 13 Bundesliga matches against Dortmund, and at least two in 12 of those. That's the longest run of this kind in the history of Der Klassiker. In total, FCB have found the Borussia net 44 times in this period.
Battle of the unbeaten
However, BVB have been in form lately and are currently unbeaten in 17 Bundesliga outings. Edin Terzic's side's last defeat was – of course – the 4-2 reverse in Munich in April. Along with Bayer Leverkusen, these two are the only teams who are still undefeated in the current Bundesliga campaign. It's only the third time that Dortmund have been unbeaten after nine matchdays, while for Bayern it's the first time in seven years.
Goals virtually guaranteed
No one can criticse these two rivals in the attacking department. Bayern have just set a new Bundesliga record with 34 goals after nine matches, while Borussia have scored the most Bundesliga goals so far in this calendar year (78 - Bayern 77).
Klassiker specialists Müller & Coman
You can safely call this Klassiker expertise: Thomas Müller has celebrated 15 wins in his 25 encounters with Dortmund, more than any other Bayern player. What's more, only Oliver Kahn (27) has featured more times for FCB in this fixture than the Bavarian. Equally impressive is Kingsley Coman's Klassiker record, which reads 10 wins and one draw. No other player has been involved in this match-up more times without ever losing. The Frenchman also holds the record for the longest winning run of one player in Der Klassiker with nine consecutive victories.
Kane's debut
Summer signing Harry Kane, on the other hand, is set for his first Bundesliga Klassiker on Saturday. The Englishman is familiar with BVB from his time at Tottenham Hotspur, though. In four meetings with the Black and Yellows, the striker has won three and scored four goals. More of the same please, Harry! There's no doubt that the 30-year-old is in form for the match: with 12 goals in his first nine Bundesliga games, Kane recently set a record in the competition.
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