Borussia Monchengladbach vs Bayern Munich
It was once called the original Der Klassiker by German football purists. But whether you agree or not, this Bundesliga rivalry never fails to disappoint.
In matchday 15 of the 2020/21 season, Borussia Monchengladbach and Bayern Munich will lock horns once again over at the Borussia Park where, not only the bragging rights are at stake, but also the points needed in order to boost their respective campaigns.
As of the moment, Bayern Munich are still on top of the Bundesliga standings with 33 points while Borussia Monchengladbach are seventh with only 21 points.
The Bavarian giants only hold a two-point lead over the second-seeded RB Leipzig, who have been on a rampant run as of late, so a win on the road will be very much needed.
Meanwhile, the Foals are also aiming for a victory in order to be in Europa League contention once more.
Borussia Monchengladbach and Bayern Munich have shared the wins and losses in their matchups for the past few years, but who will come out on top this time?
Read on below as SBOTOP examines both of these proud clubs ahead of this fixture.
Talking Points
Gladbach need all hands on deck
For the Foals to upset the defending champions, all of their available players would need to be at their sparkling form.
Valentino Lazaro, Ibrahima Traore, Rocco Reitz are all nursing injuries which hurts their depth to a degree, while star striker Marcus Thuram will continue to serve his five-match ban due to a spitting incident last month.
This means that manager Marco Rose will give Breel Embolo, Lars Stindl, Florian Neuhaus, and Matthias Ginter heavy minutes for this colossal encounter.
Breel Embolo was Gladbach’s hero in the last time out when they eked out a win over Arminia Bielefield.
The Swiss striker has notched three goals and one assist in the last five outings, and he is expected to be the main protagonist for the Foals’ attack.
Lars Stindl should also raise his game when he matches up with Thomas Muller in the midfield. The 32-year-old leads Gladbach in scoring with 10 goals along with three assists, so he is going to be a focal point as well.
Another x-factor for Gladbach will be their goalkeeper in Yann Sommer. The Swiss custodian has been quite a reliable presence for the Foals given that he has only missed one game since 2018.
While his goalkeeping numbers may be down so far this season, he still has enough quality to prevent the Bavarian giants from creating multiple Bundesliga 2021 highlights.
Bayern Munich can’t let their guard down
Hansi Flick knows very well about the consequences when his team becomes complacent even for a stretch, so we can expect a hungry Die Bayern for this weekend.
Against Mainz in the last time out, the Bavarian giants saw themselves in a 0-2 hole when Jonathan Burkardt and Alexander Hack scored quickfire goals in the first half.
Hansi Flick observing from the touchline during their match against Mainz
However, as the second half resumed, Bayern Munich looked like a much different team and they drew level in just 10 minutes.
Joshua Kimmich and Leroy Sane spearheaded the comeback, while Niklas Sule and Robert Lewandowski broke the game wide open with late goals.
That victory effectively put Die Bayern on top of the standings, leapfrogging RB Leipzig in the process.
Bayern Munich are in imperious form as they’ve now won three straight, which is in stark contrast to their lacklustre run last mid-December.
History
This specific rivalry dates back to 1965 where they got their first taste of Germany top-flight action.
Both of them have shared the limelight from 1969 to 1977, where the Foals have won five league titles while the Bavarian giants won four.
But since then, the two have gone separate ways in terms of their hierarchy in the Bundesliga.
Bayern Munich went on to become the dominant force that we’ve known today, having amassed 25 more titles, while Borussia Monchengladbach didn’t win one since.
The Foals and the Bavarian giants have alternated wins in their last seven encounters, with most of them going over two goals.
Betting Tip
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Borussia Monchengladbach vs Bayern Munich | Bayern Munich Asian Handicap -1.00 @ 1.97 |
| January 9, 03:30 (GMT+8) |
The Bundesliga 2021 odds expect the defending champions to win on the road this Friday evening.
Bayern Munich are priced at 1.60 to win, while Borussia Monchengladbach are pegged behind at 4.40 and chances for a draw are at 4.60 in the 1X2 market.
You may also fancy placing your bets on either Total Goals 2-3 @ 1.89 or Over 2.50 @ 2.13 since both of these teams can pour in a healthy amount of goals in this upcoming match.
With a rivalry of this magnitude, Borussia Monchengladbach and Bayern Munich are expected to bring their A-games for this weekend.
However, at the end of the day, the Bavarian giants should have no problem taking care of business since they are the deeper and better squad.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
| = €20 (Highly confident) |
 = €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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The post Bundesliga: Gladbach and Bayern Open New Chapter to Their Historic Rivalry appeared first on SBOTOP.