Two traditional German giants, Borussia Dortmund and Borussia Mönchengladbach play against each other on Saturday.
When Dortmund and Gladbach met for the first time last season, they battled each other for a place at the top of the table. This time, both sides are stuttering and looking to keep up with Bayern. Bayern is already seven points ahead of Dortmund. BVB will play this match without the hugely animated Jürgen Klopp on the sidelines after he was sent off in their 3-3 draw against Eintracht Frankfurt.
Both these sides recorded wins on opening day. They bought players worthy of replacing those who left in the transfer market in August. However, the fitting-in period for each and every one of those players has been longer than expected. Marco Reus is yet to gel properly with his team-mates. Gladbach hasn’t been able to replace Dante or Roman Neustadter properly yet.
Dortmund led 0-2 against Frankfurt at half-time. When the defending champion is leading 0-2, the game is supposed to be over. However, Frankfurt has started the season wonderfully and had won all their games prior to this match. They leveled the game at 2-2. Dortmund took a lead but was pegged back by a goal from Anderson.
Klopp was livid with his defence. He knows his team has to perform better. His side had struggled immensely to deal with the Champions League and the Bundesliga last season but had managed to recover after their exit from Europe. However, Bayern had not been as strong last season. For once, Klopp might actually have been spot on when he said Dortmund’s target was a Champions League spot rather than the Bundesliga.
Gladbach on another day would not have picked up a point against a resurgent HSV on Wednesday night. They had the recent ‘penalty curse’ to thank for their fortunes. HSV led the game 1-2. Martin Stranzl was shown a red card early in the second half. A penalty was awarded as well. Rafael Van der Vaart stepped up and rather unsurprisingly missed. The Bundesliga it seems needs confident penalty takers as soon as possible.
That miss came back to haunt HSV as Alvaro Rodriguez equalized in injury time. HSV should have won the game considering they had a man advantage and a goal advantage but failed to do so. Nonetheless, Gladbach’s spirit has to be applauded- not many teams would have taken a point after spending close to 40 minutes on the pitch with ten men.
And finally, now, these two stuttering sides take on each other. European football will weigh on their minds too. Gladbach opened with a draw in the Europa League while Dortmund opened with a 1-0 victory over Ajax. They face Manchester City next and Klopp has to rotate his players. Sven Bender who has been sidelined might start ahead of Ilkay Gündogan. Bender could do with some match practice.
Both of these sides have been conceding a hatful of goals. Dortmund has already conceded three goals twice this season as has Gladbach. Both sides are filled with highly talented starts. Dortmund should win this match but in current form, Gladbach could steal a draw or even all three points.
Prediction: Dortmund 2-1 Mönchengladbach
Both these sides recorded wins on opening day. They bought players worthy of replacing those who left in the transfer market in August. However, the fitting-in period for each and every one of those players has been longer than expected. Marco Reus is yet to gel properly with his team-mates. Gladbach hasn’t been able to replace Dante or Roman Neustadter properly yet.
Dortmund led 0-2 against Frankfurt at half-time. When the defending champion is leading 0-2, the game is supposed to be over. However, Frankfurt has started the season wonderfully and had won all their games prior to this match. They leveled the game at 2-2. Dortmund took a lead but was pegged back by a goal from Anderson.
Klopp was livid with his defence. He knows his team has to perform better. His side had struggled immensely to deal with the Champions League and the Bundesliga last season but had managed to recover after their exit from Europe. However, Bayern had not been as strong last season. For once, Klopp might actually have been spot on when he said Dortmund’s target was a Champions League spot rather than the Bundesliga.
Gladbach on another day would not have picked up a point against a resurgent HSV on Wednesday night. They had the recent ‘penalty curse’ to thank for their fortunes. HSV led the game 1-2. Martin Stranzl was shown a red card early in the second half. A penalty was awarded as well. Rafael Van der Vaart stepped up and rather unsurprisingly missed. The Bundesliga it seems needs confident penalty takers as soon as possible.
That miss came back to haunt HSV as Alvaro Rodriguez equalized in injury time. HSV should have won the game considering they had a man advantage and a goal advantage but failed to do so. Nonetheless, Gladbach’s spirit has to be applauded- not many teams would have taken a point after spending close to 40 minutes on the pitch with ten men.
And finally, now, these two stuttering sides take on each other. European football will weigh on their minds too. Gladbach opened with a draw in the Europa League while Dortmund opened with a 1-0 victory over Ajax. They face Manchester City next and Klopp has to rotate his players. Sven Bender who has been sidelined might start ahead of Ilkay Gündogan. Bender could do with some match practice.
Both of these sides have been conceding a hatful of goals. Dortmund has already conceded three goals twice this season as has Gladbach. Both sides are filled with highly talented starts. Dortmund should win this match but in current form, Gladbach could steal a draw or even all three points.
Prediction: Dortmund 2-1 Mönchengladbach
