Bayern - Dortmund: Early Bundesliga Final

Dortmund is leading the Bundesliga. Coach Edin Terzic's teachers and students own 53 points after 25 matches, one point more than the second-placed team - defending champion Bayern. If they win on the field of Bayern in the match of Der Klassiker on the evening of April 1, they will widen the gap to four points. It could be a big step for Dortmund to end a decade of dominance. However, if Dortmund lose, Bayern will again aim for a record of 11 consecutive championships.

Many fans may still be surprised at how Dortmund will challenge Bayern for the title this season. When the tournament started the World Cup break, the black and yellow shirt team only ranked sixth with 25 points. Meanwhile, with 34 points, Bayern is in the lead. But the post-holiday performance turned it all upside down. Dortmund won nine more wins and one draw, moving from sixth to number one. Meanwhile, Bayern won only five more, drew three and lost two. As a result, the defending champions lost their advantage to their opponents. This is also one of the reasons why the Bayern leadership fired coach Julian Nagelsmann on March 24.

Dortmund is the Bundesliga's top scorer after the World Cup break: 30 goals in 10 matches. In which, they beat fourth-placed Freiburg 5-1 and 13th-placed Cologne 6-1.

Dortmund has a small advantage over Bayern in terms of schedule. They no longer have to play in the Champions League, because they lost to Chelsea in the 1/8 round. They only have to focus on nine Bundesliga matches and the quarter-final of the German Cup against Leipzig on April 5.

Bayern are one point behind, but still have the backing of history. In the last time not leading in the end of the season - round 27 of the 2018-2019 season, the Bavarian team crushed Dortmund 5-0. At the end of that season, Bayern won the championship by two points.

Bayern also have not lost in eight Der Klassiker matches when the two teams are second in the Bundesliga: winning seven and drawing one. Bayern also won the last eight Der Klassiker at home, scoring 33 goals and conceding just six.

Bayern currently lead in terms of goals this season: 72. They also conceded at least: 27 times. Bayern's +45 goal difference is almost twice as high as Dortmund's +24.

Bayern are the only Bundesliga team still in the Champions League. They will have to dedicate themselves to two quarter-final matches against Man City on April 11 and 19. If they overcome the English team, Bayern will have at least two more semi-finals. In theory, Bayern cannot focus entirely on the Bundesliga like Dortmund. However, winning the treble twice in the 2012-2013 and 2019-2020 seasons shows that Bayern has enough force for all competitions.

The match against the old team Dortmund on the evening of April 1 will be Thomas Tuchel's first match as coach of Bayern. In two seasons with Dortmund, Tuchel won a German Cup.

In terms of force, Bayern will continue to be without two long-term injury players, Manuel Neuer and Lucas Hernandez. Midfielder Jamal Musiala and striker Choupo-Moting are also unsure of their ability to start. Meanwhile, on the Dortmund side, two players Karim Adeyemi and Youssoufa Moukoko still have to be treated for injuries. Jude Bellingham shows signs of overload. However, Dortmund will welcome the return after two games without winger Julian Brandt.

In the first leg of this season at Dortmund's field, the two teams drew 2-2. Goretzka opened the scoring for Bayern in the 33rd minute and Sane doubled the lead in the 53rd minute. But then, Moukoko shortened the score to 1-2 in the 74th minute and Modeste equalized for the home team in the 90+5 minute.