As Bayern Munich fights Borussia The three teams that lie between Bayern Munich and the Bundesliga championship are Schalke, Leipzig, and Cologne.
If you defeat all three, Bayern’s turbulent season comes to a conclusion with the trophy. Lose ground, and Borussia Dortmund can end Bayern Munich’s ten-year record streak of German titles.
The first team to play on Saturday is Schalke, and staying up is its top goal. The team may be the grittyest, most determined in the league, and their lower league ranking of 15th hides their impressive recent performance.
The 3-2 victory against Mainz by Schalke last week may have been the most thrilling conclusion of any Bundesliga game this year—even Bayern’s startling meltdown in their 3-1 loss to Mainz last month. In the 12th minute of stoppage time, Schalke twice let the lead slip away only to secure the victory with a penalty.
As Bayern Munich fights Borussia Dortmund, Schalke aims
Recently, Schalke has shown to be very difficult to defeat. Only three of Schalke’s past 14 games have ended in defeat, and the club has already dented Dortmund’s title challenge with a thrilling 2-2 draw against its local rival in March. Schalke boasts a roster full with free signings and loans.
Of course, the title battle has taken many other unexpected turns, not the least of which was Bayern’s decision to fire coach Julian Nagelsmann and replace him with Thomas Tuchel in March. The first goal in Bayern’s last two games was scored by Serge Gnabry, who has been in subpar form for the majority of the season.
While trailing Bayern by a point, Dortmund is coming off one of the league’s most convincing victories.
Dortmund retaliated to falling into second place following a 1-1 draw with Bochum two weeks prior by thrashing Wolfsburg 6-0. There is no difference in the number of points gained between this triumph and Bayern’s shaky 2-1 win against Werder Bremen the day before.
After Bayern plays Schalke, Dortmund plays another squad that enjoys upsetting the top teams in the Bundesliga. Borussia Moenchengladbach is a disappointing 10th in a season in which it has defeated Bayern 3-2 in February and Dortmund 4-2 in November, but has also suffered crushing defeats to teams like Werder Bremen and Hertha Berlin.
In the “Borussia Derby,” a matter of honor is also at stake versus Dortmund. Dortmund would break a tie with Gladbach for the most Bundesliga titles won since the league’s inception in 1963 with a victory.
You’re motivated to play against Borussia Dortmund, of course. You’ll always be motivated to face this team because they’re one of the best in the league, especially in their stadium in front of their supporters,” Gladbach defender Joe Scally remarked last week. “The game will undoubtedly be thrilling. Every time we play, I believe there is a little bit more grit between the players.
