Saturday 19 November 2011

Goetze's Second Half Goal Defeats FC Bayern

The much anticipated match between last years Bundesliga Champions Borussia Dortmund and record champion Bayern Muenchen has come and gone.  After a scoreless first half, Mario Goetze fired he ball behind Manuel Neuer to carve out a win and move Dortmund within two points of the league leader.

The battle of the giants came with great credentials, overall the two teams were rated the top offensive teams with a total of 58 goals between them (32 for Bayern and 26 for Dortmund).  They also came as the best defensive teams, only getting scored on 13 times previously (4 goals for Bayern and 9 for Dortmund.  The statistics gave a light advantage to FC Bayern,  So much for statistics, what happened today is important.

After hard fought first half, the game remained scoreless.  Nonetheless in the absence of goals the spectators were getting a treat.  Dortmund started pushing right from the start to get an early lead.  After about ten minutes Bayern found its rhythm and had better control of the game with a slight advantage.  They were unable to capitalize with their advantage.  Dortmund stood solid in the defence and stopped Bayern's offence from developing the offensive plays their fans had gotten used to.  Although Arjen Robben was available for this match, a Schweinsteiger directing the midfield was definitely missing.

The second half began with both teams operating cautiously.  The first fifteen minutes became a bit of a bore with the cautious tactical play.  The game changed in the 65th minute, when Mario Götze had his second attempt on goal, which was previously spoiled by Manuel Neuer.  He didn't wait for an invitation the second time, when he came by the ball in the 16 meter area.  He fired the ball into the left corner, from about 14 meters, leaving no chance for Manuel Neuer.  The go ahead goal brought action back into the game, Robben was changed for David Alaba, while Olic took the place of Thomas Mueller.  Nils Petersen later replaced Rafhina showing the shift to a more attacking style of game.


While there were a few anxious moments n both sides, Munich came up empty after 90 and Dortmund collected the 3 points, moving them within 2 points of FC Bayern in second place on the table.

Dortmund played like a champion and is deserving of this victory.  Dortmund concentrated on keeping its defence tight and waited for counters to move the play to the Bayern goal.  While Bayern did have plenty of chances, their passes were often too inaccurate and shots on goal wasted.  The feared combination soccer that Munich is known for, was effectively shut down.  Goetze is the hero of this game. 



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