Bayern one win away from title after beating Gladbach

Bayern Munich 2-1 Borussia Mönchengladbach, Allianz Arena
(Zirkzee 26', Goretzka 86' — Pavard [OG] 37')

As they have done on so many occasions over the course of this unusual season, Bayern Munich weighed up the challenge set for them and responded accordingly and emphatically.

Just three days after a German Cup semifinal win over Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayern were missing key players through injury and suspension, and facing a side which had beaten them in the return fixture back in December.

And while they were second-best for long periods against Borussia Mönchengladbach, still they prevailed.

Leon Goretzka netted the winner four minutes from time after a Benjamin Pavard own-goal had cancelled out Joshua Zirkzee's opener in the first period. The Bavarians are now just one more win away from an eighth straight Bundesliga title.

A season of problems - and answers

When Niko Kovac lost the dressing room back in autumn, the board identified in Hansi Flick a head coach who perfectly combines tactical acumen and management experience which Kovac lacked.

After Thomas Müller endured a difficult first half of the season, the German international bounced back and equaled the Bundesliga’s assists record.

When half of their first-choice back line was ruled out injured, Bayern improvised by throwing in a teenage winger at left-back – and Alphonso Davies has been a revelation.

And when the coronavirus pandemic put the Bundesliga on hold for two months, the Bavarians responded by winning every game since the restart by a combined score of 17-4 to put them within touching distance of the title.

Borussia Dortmund's late win in Düsseldorf earlier on Saturday meant that Bayern couldn't secure that title against Gladbach, but the visit of Marco Rose's Foals to Fröttmaning still posed a significant challenge.

With Müller and Robert Lewandowski suspended and Davies and Kingsley Coman fatigued following the midweek cup semifinal, Flick was forced to make changes. "It’s because we have so many games," he explained ahead of kick-off.

Lucas Hernandez made only his ninth start of the season, Mikael Cuisance made his first ever start for Bayern – against his former club – while Joshua Zirkzee replaced Lewandowski up front.

It was time to see just how good this Bayern squad really is.

Bayern second-best 

But by half-time, Gladbach – also missing their top scorer in Alassane Plea – had passed more, tackled more and run more than Bayern, and were deservedly level at 1-1 thanks to Pavard's own-goal.

Without Müller coordinating Bayern's relentless pressing in the final third, Gladbach had more time on the ball to plan their forays forward and Patrick Herrmann saw an early goal ruled out for offside.

But even a depleted and rejigged Bayern need only one opening. When Cuisance put Yann Sommer under pressure, the Swiss stopper, who had saved heroically from Hernandez just minutes earlier, played the ball straight to Zirkzee and the 19-year-old finished coolly into an empty net from distance.

Gladbach started the second half on the front foot as well, but the absence of Plea and Marcus Thuram, who went off injured, showed as chances went begging. And when Flick decided that the young legs of Davies and Coman could handle 30 minutes after all, the tide began to turn.

Two stages down, one to go

"We did everything so well for 60 minutes but we started getting pushed further and further back in the last 30 minutes after the changes," explained Gladbach midfielder Christoph Kramer.

"Against the quality of Bayern, you're facing ball after ball after ball. You can’t make any mistakes in possession but that’s what we did."

The culprit was Oscar Wendt. When Davies played the ball out towards the right, the veteran fullback lost sight of the advancing Pavard. The Frenchman sent in a first-time cross and Goretzka arrived typically late to score for the second week in a row.

"That was a tough piece of work. We had to make changes whereas Gladbach had a week to recover," said a visibly relieved Flick at full-time, revealing that Bayern have divided their nine post-corona Bundesliga games into three stages of three.

Stages one and two have now been completed perfectly. A successful start to stage three away to Werder Bremen on Tuesday night will see them crowned champions; the most resounding response of all at the end of an unprecedented season.

+++ As it happened: +++

FT Bayern 2-1 Gladbach — That's the match and it was a pretty entertaining affair, though with few truly clear-cut chances in the second half. Gladbach really tapered off and appeared to be content to settle for a draw. Bayern, like the defending champions they are, continued to probe and got their reward.

A nice combination from Pavard and Goretzka clinched the victory and only a disaster would deny them claiming an eighth straight Bundesliga title.

As for Gladbach, they'll be disappointed they couldn't build on a very promising first half. They could now lose fourth spot to Leverkusen, who travel to Schalke on Sunday.

89' Can't say that goal wasn't coming. Gladbach seemed to have lost energy and had little motivation going forward. Bayern were pressing and probing but had also looked fairly uninspiring. But they were offered an opening and they took it with glee.

86' GOAL! Bayern 2-1 Gladbach — A wayward ball travels past Gladbach's defense to the right wing, where Benjamin Pavard is on hand to send an inch-perfect ball into the box for Leon Goretzka to tap home. The Germany international's sixth goal of the season and Bayern retain their seven-point lead over Dortmund. The title is just one win away and they have three games to get it.

77' Slight lull in the match as neither team is managing to make any headway going forward. Okyere Wriedt replaces Joshua Zirkzee - it may not be his debut for Bayern, but it's the 25-year-old's first appearance since 2017. Interesting choice from Hansi Flick, who could have also called upon promising talent Sarpeet Singh. 

70' There has been a couple of substitutions from both sides in the last 10 minutes too.

Alphonso Davies and Kingsley Coman have entered the fray for Lucas Hernandez and Michael Cuisance.

While Oscar Wendt has just replaced Patrick Herrmann.

66' SAVE! Gnabry mis-hits an effort which deflects of Christoph Kramer, forcing Yann Sommer into an impressive save down low to his right. He's tipped it around the post and it's yet another corner for the defending champions. They really are taking control of this match now.

66' CHANCE! Kimmich swings in a delicious ball just waiting to be prodded home but three Bayern players, all escaping their markers, can't get the decisive touch and the ball is cleared.

64' Kimmich heads narrowly over from a corner, but Sommer probably had it covered.

62' Bayern are turning up the pressure now, probing forward more frequently and pressing Gladbach effectively. Expect chances to pop up.

53' CHANCE! Herrmann's shot after being teed up by Embolo is parried away by Neuer. Gladbach continue to press.

48' Neuer gets down lown to claim a cross, spills the ball, but reacts quickly to kick away the loose ball. Gladbach starting bright in the second period.

46' SECOND HALF — And we're back! Tony Jantschke has replaced Nico Elvedi for Gladbach.

HT Bayern 1-1 Gladbach — It's been a back and forth affair here with both teams dealing well with their injury and suspension woes. Both teams had great chances to take the lead early on, before defensive blunders canceled each other out. An enthralling second half awaits!

39' Bayern respond and go straight back down the other end to create a half-chance for Michael Cuisance, but the midfielder sends his effort wide.

37' GOAL! Bayern 1-1 Gladbach — Back in the game! Patrick Herrmann sends a delightful low ball into the box and Benjamin Pavard has no choice but to try and intercept with Jonas Hofmann lurking. Unfortunately for the Bayern defender, he's only been able to poke the ball past Manuel Neuer for an own goal.

30' After a very promising opening, Gladbach really have thrown away the opening goal. A marginally offside goal, a glaring miss from Embolo and now they're 1-0 down due to a defensive blunder. They're still very much in the game but they've made it difficult for themselves.

26' GOAL! Bayern 1-0 Gladbach — Poor attempt at a cross-goal pass from Yann Sommer and Joshua Zirkzee hits a perfect first-time effort into an empty net.

25' CHANCE! This game has livened up with Breel Embolo seeing his header denied by Manuel Neuer. The Swiss front man should really have netted the follow-up but somehow manages to screw his effort wide. That was an easy tap-in!

22' SAVE! A blunder from Matthias Ginter allows Lucas Hernandez to steal possession inside the box and smash an effort towards goal. But goalkeeper Yann Sommer makes a massive stop to deny the Frenchman.

16' GOAL (ruled out by VAR) — Jonas Hofmann with a wonderful low finish after breaking through Bayern's defense. But he's ruled marginally offside after the referee checks with VAR. No goal.

10' Big blow for Gladbach. Marcus Thuram has gone off due to injury and is replaced by Breel Embolo. Not a great sign for their hopes in causing an upset here.

1' KICK-OFF! The action has started in Munich.

18:22 CET — Gladbach have had a very inconsistent run of games since the restart. Victories over Eintracht and Union Berlin have been mixed with losses to Leverkusen and Freiburg and a draw with Bremen.

It's not the kind of form befitting a team chasing a top-four spot.

18:15 CET — Bayern are showing off their squad strength tonight. Lucas Hernandez replaces Alphonso Davies at left-back, Michael Cuisance is handed his first ever start for the club, and against his former team. Zirkzee makes just his third appearance in the starting lineup.

This is definitely not a full-strength Bayern side, we'll soon see how they fare against Champions League hopefuls Gladbach.

17:45 CET — The teams have been announced...

Bayern start with Gnabry, which is a boost in the absence of Lewandowski, while Hernandez, Zirkzee and Cuisance also get rare chances.

Gladbach's lineup has no room for Breel Embolo, who seems to be deemed fit enough only for the bench.

With Borussia Dortmund sealing a last-gasp victory, Bayern Munich will have to wait at least one more week before wrapping up their eighth consecutive title.

First, however, they need to make sure they continue their scintillating form with victory over Borussia Mönchengladbach. The action kicks off at 18:30 CEST (17:30 UTC) — stay tuned for all the pre-game updates.

Full-time (in Dortmund) Fortuna Düsseldorf 0-1 Borussia Dortmund — Who else but Erling Haaland! In the last minute of added time, the Norwegian has risen high to give Dortmund a very important lead with a fine header. The title race is still - very faint - chance. All Black and Yellow eyes will be hoping for a Bayern slip against Gladbach. 

66' (in Dortmund) VAR! Fortuna Düsseldorf 0-0 Borussia Dortmund — Guerreiro's goal has been ruled out for handball in the build-up. A draw would almost certainly hand the title to Bayern if they beat Gladbach, although not mathematically. 

65' (in Dortmund) GOAL! Fortuna Düsseldorf 0-1 Borussia Dortmund — Raphel Guerreiro puts Dortmund ahead after a combination from Hakimi, Hazard and Haaland created the opportunity.

Half-time (in Dortmund)
It's 0-0 in Düsseldorf as Dortmund have struggled to find a way through Fortuna's defense. Achraf Hakimi had the away side's best chance but was denied by Florian Kastenmeier.

Hello and welcome to DW's coverage of Bayern Munich's Bundesliga clash with Borussia Mönchengladbach.

The match kicks off at 18:30 CEST (17:30 UTC) but our match blog will go live at 15:30 to include brief updates on Borussia Dortmund's visit to Fortuna Düsseldorf. The title race could be decided if results fall a certain way...

State of play

If Borussia Dortmund lose their clash against Fortuna Düsseldorf in the early kick-off on Saturday, the way is clear for Bayern Munich to be crowned Bundesliga champions for the eighth straight season. They'll come up against a Borussia Mönchengladbach side desperate to pick up points to aid their quest for Champions League qualification.

Team news

Bayern will have to do without a string of stars, chief among them top goalscorer Robert Lewandowski. The Pole is suspended for this clash and youngster Joshua Zirkzee will likely take his place.

Thomas Müller joins Lewandowski with a suspension, while Thiago is missing through injury and Serge Gnabry is also a doubt.

Gladbach, meanwhile, are also missing their top scorer in Alassane Plea due to a red-card suspension.

Possible lineups: Bayern Munich

Neuer — Pavard, Boateng, Alaba, Davies — Kimmich, Martinez — Coman, Goretzka, Perisic — Zirkzee

Possible lineups: Borussia Mönchengladbach

Sommer — Lainer, Ginter, Elvedi, Bensebaini — Hofmann, Kramer, Neuhaus — Stindl — Embolo, Thuram