1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites

Opinion: Good night suspense!

Stefan NestlerOctober 5, 2015

Bayern Munich didn't just beat Borussia Dortmund, they humiliated them. Slowly but surely hopes of an exciting Bundesliga title race are also dying, according to DW's Stefan Nestler

https://p.dw.com/p/1Giqm
Fußball Bundesliga FC Bayern München vs. BVB Borussia Dortmund
Image: Reuters/M. Rehle

Pssssss! You could almost hear the air being let out of the title race on Sunday, almost as if someone had punctured a tire with a big nail. Bayern Munich, the defending champions and league leaders dispatched of their pursuers, Borussia Dortmund, 5-1, continuing their perfect start to the season. Their seven-point lead over their closest rivals has made the suspense (about who will go on to win the league) a virtual write-off. This has less to do with the fact that Pep Guardiola's team won the big match against BVB, but rather much more to do with how the reigning German champions simply toyed with the No. 2 team.

Too easy

A supposed top team simply can't afford to concede goals like the first and third scored by Bayern on Sunday. The long balls from Jerome Boateng over 40 and then 50 meters (164 feet) - first to Thomas Müller and then to Robert Lewandowski - duped the entire BVB defense. But it shouldn't be that easy. It is a credit to BVB coach Thomas Tuchel that he didn't seek to sugarcoat these mistakes in his post-match comments, but instead was hopping mad about the level of naiveté displayed by his defenders.

Not a challenger in sight

Dortmund had traveled to Munich as the league's only undefeated team - apart from Bayern themselves. After Thomas Tuchel had replaced Jürgen Klopp as coach in the offseason, many were dreaming of a return of BVB to the status of serious challenger to the club that has won more German titles than any other. But as Sunday's big match clearly demonstrated, the black-and-yellow-clad men still have a lot of work ahead of them.

So what about the other would-be Bayern challengers? In Kevin de Bruyne, Wolfsburg, last season's runners-up, sold their main strength off to England. Borussia Mönchengladbach have looked better of late, but they still look more like the patient viewer rather than one cable of sending others to the clinic. Following a few wins, Schalke has been dragged back down to earth. And Bayer Leverkusen are battling more against themselves than their opponents. In other words: There is nobody in the Bundesliga who can carry the water for the Bavarians. Not just that, but with newly signed Douglas Costa, Munich have also added a good deal of further quality.

There is no doubt about it! Bayern are in a class of their own in German football. Out of sight. All-powerful. And there is no repair kit for that damaged tire to be found. Good night suspense!