When Saturday's action became evening, the Bavarian giants displayed their superior quality as Big Bad Bayern, almost unbeatable and stimulated into peak form by worthy opponents, as evidenced in their later match at rising Eintracht Frankfurt.
Although BVB's match with RB Leipzig carried the weight of a crucial encounter in the early part of the domestic championship, with second facing third, predictions were relatively conservative in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Be it Niko Kovac referencing his one-time Bayern manager the experienced coach ("if you can't win, you shouldn't lose," he commented at full-time) or his rival manager Ole Werner talking of his "progressing" side, it appeared as though a shared points was fair, leaving both parties partially sated, partially frustrated.
And this is a game that counts, and has always mattered since RB's top-flight arrival. These two clubs are chalk and cheese in approach and what they feel they represent.
If the Bundesliga is familiar with Leipzig – rather than having totally welcomed the club in principle – there is a unique intensity of animosity that greets Leipzig when they come to their home ground.
The day before sizeable billboards in urban Dortmund pictured two portions of fries, one without toppings and one with tomato and mayonnaise (for the red and white of RB), annotated with the legend "Merely yellow doesn't make you happy," with the double meaning of the German word for yellow rather than financial resources making light of the reputation of Leipzig as a commercial enterprise.
The notices were signed "best sporting regards, their nickname." Despite the passage of time RB accept they won't be regarded as genuine by significant portions of German football fans, so have taken the decision to deliberately adopt the villain arc; a similar advertising campaign was employed in Bayern's city ahead of their first away game there, playfully mentioning "eventually an uncomplicated traditional kit" making an appearance after some Bayern fans' complaints about the title holders' new strip.
These two teams are targeting the similar objectives further increases the rivalry, although it is not the motivation behind it. Munich's impressive form has further emphasized this perception, and witnessing Luis Díaz surpass even their top scorer this weekend, with his comeback displays making light of the ongoing unavailability of the young talent, this weekend has been a demonstration of the actual situation of the current hierarchy.
The visitors began strongly and surprised Dortmund with a prepared free-kick, scored by Christoph Baumgartner but designed by dead-ball expert their tactical coach, dismissed from his job with Dortmund's youth team in spring.
Appearing somewhat tired from their midweek Champions League exertions the home side equalised through an visually impressive goal of their own, with their full-back putting the finishing touch and though "the result was uncertain" in his assessment, the shared points appeared just.
Had there been a message needing to be sent here, there was nobody with a loud enough voice to completely achieve it. Ridle Baku commented on his side's development under the manager, stating that his side had dug in and "shown character, something missing a bit last year," but it all seemed like small improvements in the right direction instead of making any bold statements.
"We're one of the best teams in the league," Baku continued and there is little disputing that at present, but there is also the feeling that it won't quite be enough this year in terms of creating a genuine battle at the top.
This game perhaps underlined precisely how the hosts have developed under the tutelage of the head coach, but also why there may be clear ceilings to what they can accomplish with him at the helm. They rode out their tiredness and Leipzig's strong spells and, in the closing phases of the game, suggested that they could be prepared to advance and claim three points, notably through the strategic substitutions of the experienced midfielder and the young talent.
However, was the confidence to turn increased tempo into a victory, or just a hope that it would? Kovac's Dortmund can be difficult opponents, but there is a uncertainty over whether they can really be winners. As the Swiss international suggested, the away game against the champions after the fixture hiatus will tell us plenty.
If Dortmund or Leipzig deserve championship status is a distinct matter. Following numerous seasons of internal and external instability, maybe BVB could do with a campaign of consistent results, of managing development of gradual improvement; the latter aim also being that of Leipzig.
Concerning these organizations that regard themselves as total opposites, they employed this fixture providing an excellent demonstration of facing similar challenges.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 6 | 22 | 18 |
| 2 | Borussia Dortmund | 6 | 8 | 14 |
| 3 | RB Leipzig | 6 | 0 | 13 |
| 4 | Stuttgart | 6 | 2 | 12 |
| 5 | Bayer Leverkusen | 6 | 4 | 11 |
| 6 | Cologne | 6 | 2 | 10 |
| 7 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 6 | 1 | 9 |
| 8 | Freiburg | 6 | 0 | 8 |
| 9 | Hamburg | 6 | -2 | 8 |
| 10 | St Pauli | 6 | -1 | 7 |
| 11 | Hoffenheim | 6 | -3 | 7 |
| 12 | Werder Bremen | 6 | -5 | 7 |
| 13 | Union Berlin | 6</ |
A geospatial analyst with over a decade of experience in terrain modeling and environmental data visualization.
