Tomorrow night brings Der Klassiker, the German Classico, as Bayern Munich travels to Borussia Dortmund. Since the foundation of the Bundesliga in 1963, these are the two most successful clubs, by a very wide margin.
Bayern and Dortmund have won a combined 21 of the past 25 Bundesliga titles. Munich have won the last seven and eight of the last ten, with BVB claiming the other two and finishing runner-up in four of the remaining seasons. Let’s run through the FYIs for this massive affair, which kicks off at 7:30pm local time on Tuesday May 26.
TV Info, Betting Odds: There aren’t a whole lot of sporting events to bet on right now, on account of the coronavirus pandemic, so a lot of traditional sports bettors have been placing their bets elsewhere. Punters can utilize the best online casino signup bonus in Canada to get in on the internet action. Despite this match taking place at Signal Iduna Park, visiting Bayern (-110) are substantially favored over host Dortmund (+260). FS1 will carry the broadcast of this match in the United States, with a kickoff time of 12:30pm EST.
Der Klassiker Main Storylines: Due to the COVID-19 crisis shutting down all but a few of the world’s professional sports leagues, this match could receive more global attention than any previous edition of the series.
Of the sports leagues that are actually active right now, the Bundesliga is by far the biggest and brightest on a global scale. This game will also have serious title implications, as Bayern sit atop the table, by four points over Dortmund with just six matches left to play after this one. And as you obviously know already, this match will be played behind closed doors, which is a huge advantage to the reigning champions.
The presence of the famed Yellow Wall would have certainly shifted the odds more in favor of the challengers.
Der Klassiker Head to Head:
Bayern won the reverse fixture by a whopping 4-0 margin back on November 9. In the last five matches, they hold an eye-popping 17-4 edge in goal differential, despite BVB actually winning two of those clashes.
In all-time matches played in the Bundesliga, Bayern holds a 48-26 advantage in victories; with the two sides splitting the points on 29 occasions.
Der Klassiker Form Guide and Stats Zone : Borussia Dortmund WWLWW Bayern Munich: WWWWW
Goals For MUN 80, DOR 74, Goals Against MUN 28, DOR 33, Goal Differential MUN +52 DOR +41, Assists DOR 64, MUN 62
Der Klassiker Players to Watch:
Borussia Dortmund- PSG’s Kylian Mbappe might be the overall Next Big Thing in world soccer, but Erling Haaland probably holds that distinction right now in terms of just pure, outright goal scorers. All eyes will be on him in this match.
Wing Jadon Sancho is likely to be the talk of the summer transfer window, as he’s on the radar of several big clubs. Defender Achraf Hakimi is a rising star, and he’s currently third on the team in assists.
Bayern Munich- Robert Lewandowski is one of the world’s best strikers and he’s the all-time leading scorer in the series (22). Wing Phillipe Coutinho has flopped at Barcelona, but his loan spell here has seen some success.
He’s third on the team in both goals and assists this season. Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is one of the most accomplished shot-stoppers in the world.
If you would have told the February version of myself that the #Bundesliga would be the sports league I'd be watching the most over the next 3 months, I would have been like GTFOH man, no way But here we are so #HejaBvB
Planning on getting Excited for #DerKlassiker on Tuesday pic.twitter.com/uaFUUxb8KF— Paul M. Banks (@PaulMBanks) May 23, 2020
Der Klassiker Prediction: Bayern Munich 2, Borussia Dortmund 0
The Bavarian giants already had the edge coming into this match, but two hours ago we learned that the Yellow and Blacks will be without midfielder Thiago Alcantara. As impressive as they’ve looked in the two matches since the restart, they really needs all hands on deck here to pull off the upset.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly contributes to WGN TV, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Now and SB Nation.
You can follow Banks, a former writer for Chicago Tribune.com, on Twitter and his cat on Instagram.