Preview: Can Borussia Mönchengladbach be the much needed thorn in Bayern’s side?
As the Bundesliga is set to restart, the genuine fears of a “one horse race” persist. Those who watched the recent friendly between Bayern and RB Salzburg might disagree. A bit of comedy aside though, one cannot help but wonder what the Bundesliga has come to. Last season was supposed to be an exception; strangely, what happened in 2012-13 is seemingly becoming the norm.
Seven points ahead of nearest challengers Bayer 04 Leverkusen with a game in hand, there is indeed a chance that Bayern might extend their lead. Leverkusen does not have the squad to sustain runs on all fronts up to May. The other challenger of course has emerged rather late in the season and was hidden by Borussia Dortmund’s poor form. Gladbach sits in third place, 11 points behind Bayern and ready for a challenge at the title.
They will come into this match without Roel Brouwers and Tony Jantschke. This means Alvaro Dominguez is set to take over at center back. Daniel Van Buyten and Holger Badstuber are both definitely out for Bayern as is Bastian Schweinsteiger. Javier Martinez is unlikely to feature due to a foot injury. Also, Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben are both slightly doubtful.
The previous meeting between these two sides ended in a 3-1 victory for Bayern on the opening day of the Bundesliga. Arjen Robben, who turned 30 recently, and Mario Mandzukic fired Bayern into a quick 2-0 lead only to see it halved due to an own goal by Dante. A David Alaba penalty late on in the match saw Bayern win in slightly unconvincing fashion.
Pep Guardiola knows exactly how difficult the task ahead of him is as Bayern’s official website found out:
“We’re up against a very, very good team (at Borussia Park) where they’ve won all their matches apart from a solitary draw. It will be a big test for us and we’ll see whether the work we’ve done in the winter break was any good.”
The big question really is whether this talented Gladbach side under a very talented coach in Lucien Favre can do some damage. With Leverkusen and Dortmund spread too thin, they could become the biggest challenger to Bayern’s throne; striking a blow on Friday would be a first step toward exactly that.
Where to watch the match: Live Streams, Live Scores, Start Times, TV Channels:
Watch Borussia Mönchengladbach vs Bayern München live on Friday, January 24, 2014:
In Canada at 14:30 ET on GolTV Canada
In the UK at 19:30 GMT on BT Sport 2
In the USA at 14:30 ET on GolTV USA
In Germany, viewers can tune into Sky Bundesliga HD 1 amongst other networks to watch the match.
For the complete TV listings and live scores upon kick-off, visit the Mönchengladbach-Bayern match page.
