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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Andy Brassell

Beautiful but flawed Bayern give Dortmund a chance to revive title race

Bayern Munich's Serge Gnabry looks dejected after missing a chance against Hoffenheim.
Bayern Munich's Serge Gnabry looks dejected after missing a chance against Hoffenheim. Photograph: Michael Probst/AP

This could have been Tuesday night all over again. So much of Bayern Munich’s play dazzled a sold-out PreZero Arena, and the champions could easily have done to Hoffenheim what they had done to Red Bull Salzburg four days previously. Maybe the difference between the two games was just “a little bit of luck,” as Thomas Müller said it was.

There was certainly little sense of anguish or regret. Julian Nagelsmann may have the luxury of being able to look at the process knowing that the results will likely follow, but he was satisfied with his team’s performance. Bayern are playingmuch more fluently than they were even a few weeks ago. That they didn’t hand out a second successive thrashing to disoriented opponents was more down to fine margins, with three goals chalked off for offside, and the excellence of a very busy Oliver Baumann in Hoffenheim’s goal.

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