Another weekend, another round of Bundesliga fixtures is now in the books. Although much of the focus was on the latest edition of Der Klassiker, there were also some other happenings with teams ranging from Champions League hopefuls to relegation battlers.
Let's have a look at what took place over this weekend's round of fixtures.
Top five teams in the Bundesliga up to March 8
Bayern's win over Dortmund in Der Klassiker - the third meeting of this season - ensured that they remain on top of the league table, although RB Leipzig are still in close pursuit
Who are the top three scorers in the Bundesliga?
Despite scoring a brace, Erling Haaland's efforts weren't enough to keep Dortmund from losing 4-2 to Bayern in this weekend's Klassiker. Robert Lewandowski, meanwhile, netted a hat-trick to increase his total to a whopping 31 goals - and there's still 14 games left to play!
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Top Bundesliga headlines
A total bore draw in battle of relegation candidates: On Friday, the bottom two sides in the Bundesliga - Schalke and Mainz - squared off in a desperate scrap for a much-needed three points. Schalke, who sit in 18th spot with just ten points so far, are arguably going to be the first team relegated if they can't turn things around. Given that Mainz, who sit in 17th on 18 points, haven't done that much better, this presented a golden opportunity for Schalke to close the daunting gap.
Unfortunately, the match ended as a draw, and scoreless to boot.
Battle of the strikers: Saturday saw the latest installment of Der Klassiker, and the third iteration of the famous derby this season. It certainly did not disappoint as six goals were scored between the two sides, and more significant, two of the Bundesliga's top marksmen had a starring role.
However, in the battle of the veteran versus the youngster, it was Robert Lewandowski who came out on top. The 32-year-old netted a hat-trick to cancel out Erling Haaland's early brace as Hansi Flick's men made it three wins in three Klassiker ties this season. Both players also set records: Lewandowski, who now has an eye-popping 31 goals so far, has scored 19 times against his former club. No player has achieved this in league history. Meanwhile, Haaland, who has accumulated an impressive 19 goals to date, has scored four times against Bayern across all competitions this season. The last player to score four times (or more) against die Roten in a single campaign was Cristiano Ronaldo, who netted five times for Real Madrid during the 2016/2017 term.
RB Leipzig aren't giving up: Since suffering a shock 3-2 reversal to relegation-threatened Mainz on January 30th, die Roten Bullen have been mostly unstoppable. Save for a loss to Liverpool in their first leg round of 16 tie, RB Leipzig have won all eight of their games across all comps. That includes six consecutive matches in the Bundesliga, which ensures that they remain within touching distance of Bayern. In fact, with just two points separating the two sides, it will be interesting to see if there will be any changes in the league standings over the next few months.
Will Wolfsburg and Eintracht Frankfurt regain their stride: Both teams have had an impressive 2021 so far, which has helped them vault up the table into the Champions League places. However, both have also seen their long-standing unbeaten streaks end, and all eyes will be on whether these two surprise packages can find their footing in order to keep Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund at bay.
Top Bundesliga matches: March 12-14, 2021
Werder Bremen vs Bayern Munich: This is a must-win game for Bayern in order to try to shake off RB Leipzig, who are just lurking and waiting for them to slip up. As for the hosts, they'll come into this game with just one win from their last five. Still, although they're not in any danger of relegation, they'd certainly hope to at least match their result from the reverse fixture, when they held the reigning champions to a one-all draw in Munich.
RB Leipzig vs Eintracht Frankfurt: This tie, featuring two top-four sides, should be hopefully an interesting one for fans and neutrals alike. Leipzig obviously will need to win this game in order to potentially leap-frog Bayern (if, of course, the Bavarian titans lose to Werder Bremen). Meanwhile, Eintracht Frankfurt will be looking to shake off the funk and regain the same form that put them in pole position to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in their history.
Wolfsburg vs Schalke: Likewise, Wolfsburg can get back to winning ways as they're set to welcome a Schalke side who have won just once all season, and failed to fire in a draw draw with fellow relegation candidates Mainz. The question is whether they'll be able to shake off back-to-back losses in the DFB-Pokal and in the league to RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim respectively.
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