So that’s that – Bayern roll on and stay unbeaten in the league, though Leverkusen remain top after their 3-2 win over Hoffenheim earlier today. This has been fun, see ya!
News from elsewhere: Newcastle have turned over Arsenal.
A hat-trick last Saturday, another one today. Kane’s got 17 goals in 14 games for Bayern now. Three hat-tricks in total for his new club. Main point: silly numbers.
“The Bayern kit is an interesting combination of colours, reminiscent of strawberries and cream,” writes Peter Oh. “Their Englishman has been so smooth that they oughta call it ‘Strawberries and Kane’.”
FULL TIME: Dortmund 0-4 Bayern
Domination from Bayern and Harry Kane. The hosts just never looked as if they were in the game, conceding in the fourth minute to an Upamecano header. And then Kane took over, the Englishman demonstrating his substantial chemistry with the three delightful players behind him: Sané, Musiala and Coman. This was meant to be Dortmund’s chance to change the direction of this rivalry; instead, they’ve been brushed aside with ease.
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GOAL! Dortmund 0-4 Bayern (Kane 90 + 3)
No way. Pavlović wins the ball in the middle, slots in Kane, who is one on one and slots in himself. He’s got another hat-trick, his third for Bayern this season. It’s November.
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90 + 2 min: Müller curled in a ball to Kane, whose first touch with the chest was too heavy as he charged into the box.
90 min: Adeyemi shows off his quick feet again on the right, but Bayern shirts surround him and brush him away.
89 min: Müller and Choupo-Moting come on for Bayern. Musiala and Sané, both terrific today, come off.
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87 min: Dortmund suddenly look slick in the box, and the ball finds Moukoko in the middle but he blasts high from close range.
86 min: Sabitzer has a pop, but it goes over.
85 min: Adeyemi jinks away on the right-hand side for Dortmund and wins a free-kick from shooting range.
84 min: Bayern are playing triangles in the Dortmund half.
83 min: Sané tries to thread through a ball to Musiala, but it’s blocked away.
81 min: Corner for Dortmund, but it poses few problems.
80 min: Kane wins the ball deep in his own half and wins the foul, too, pushed down by Haller.
78 min: Coman, Musiala and Sané drive forward, which is nightmarish if you’re a defender, but the shot is blocked.
77 min: Reus tussles for the ball and is surrounded by three Bayern players, which sums it up.
76 min: Dortmund must go again, but this game is very much done – and Bayern could land a few more blows on the counter. Musiala launches forward and is taken down by Sabitzer, who gets a yellow.
GOAL! Dortmund 0-3 Bayern (Kane 72)
Another one! Coman finds space on the right wing and plays the perfect low cross to Kane, who takes a touch and then slots into the bottom left corner as Kobel dives the other way. Can he get his third hat-trick of the season?
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71 min: Yep, offside.
70 min: Bayern think they have their third… but it’s ruled offside. Laimer chips a through ball to Kane, who squares it for Musiala to slot in. But Kane appears to be off…
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68 min: The ball is headed clear – no dramas for Bayern.
67 min: Bayern are just holding their shape, with Dortmund now seeing more of the ball. Nmecha has a shot and it’s deflected out for a corner.
66 min: Adeyemi’s on for Dortmund by the way, and he’s looking lively on the right for the men in yellow.
64 min: Dortmund attack down the right-hand side but Bayern break on the counter and Kane finds Coman, who plays in Musiala… but Kobel saves the day again with a strong save.
60 min: Hummels gets a yellow for a nasty looking challenge on Kane. Shin pads to the rescue there.
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59 min: Min-jae heads away a nice-looking cross into the box. Upamecano comes off for Bayern – which maybe means he’s still struggling with his injury.
58 min: Now it’s Kobel’s turn to make a top save. He keeps out Sané with a dive to his right and, yes, we can now call this an end-to-end game.
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56 min: Cracking save from Neuer! Reus brilliantly took down a long ball from Hummels in the box, and played a one-two with Füllkrug before firing in his shot. Neuer moved to his left to block it.
55 min: Schlotterbeck steps on the foot of Laimer – free kick for Bayern in their own half.
54 min: Bayern counter from the corner and Davies crosses in from the left, but it’s deflected and Dortmund see off the danger.
53 min: Schlotterbeck gets the ball out of his feet to try and drive the ball in low from range – it comes off Upamecano for a corner.
52 min: Sané wins it pressing high up the pitch but can’t deliver a killer ball.
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51 min: Malen and Süle pass it back and forth on the right for Dortmund as the hosts finally start to move the ball around a bit more tidily.
48 min: Bayern do put the ball into the net, but the flag’s gone up.
47 min: It’s pinball in the box as Bayern pepper the goal. A third already feels inevitable.
46 min: And it’s nearly three… Kane plays Musiala through and it’s one-on-one with the keeper, but out comes a big save from Kobel. Corner.
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The second half begins!
“Bayern 8 out of 10 times are a half step quicker to pass or make a block or recover a lost ball,” writes Gene Salorio. “Not about managers or systems, one team simply has slightly better to much better players.”
Alright, are Dortmund gonna pull off something special here? Probs not. But they’re gonna change things up – Niklas Süle is coming on for Marius Wolf.
I forgot to give Sané his dues for the corner into Upamecano – it was a delightful ball in, on the spot and with pace. Just needed a touch on it and it was always going in.
HALF-TIME: Dortmund 0-2 Bayern
Bayern were 2-0 up after just nine minutes, with Kane and Upamecano the goalscorers. Dortmund simply haven’t turned up yet, with the visitors dominating possession and looking quite frightening on the counter. Musiala, Sané and Coman have provided some artistic flourishes in the attacking third, and Kane’s enjoying himself too.
45 + 2 min: Huge chance for Dortmund as they finally burst into life going forward, the ball trickling to Malen in the box, but he’s off balance when shooting – an attempt to find the top left corner goes wrong, the ball going over.
45 + 1 min: Upamecano gives the ball away near the centre but Dortmund can’t keep a hold of it themselves. It’s been that way throughout this half.
44 min: Coman keeps popping into the spaces, drifting in from the right before threatening to drive with the ball through the middle. He’s been terrific.
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43 min: A yellow card for Bayern’s manager, Tuchel! Not sure what he’s done, but the ref’s given him a telling off there.
41 min: Hummels plays it long and Mazraoui deals with it – nearly a decent handball shout there, with the right-back on the edge of the box, but ref’s not ‘aving it.
39 min: Nothing comes of it.
38 min: Free kick for Bayern on the left, with Sané positioned to cross the ball into the box.
37 min: Nearly a stunner from Goretzka, who takes a cross onto the chest in the box and then unleashes a scissor/bicycle kick (a mix of the two, I guess) that flies wide.
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36 min: Bayern refuse to lose the ball, passing it around the back as Dortmund chase away.
34 min: Malen’s cross is blocked and the ball flies comfortably into the hands of Neuer.
33 min: Upamecano has been pristine at the back so far, having initially been an injury doubt for this.
32 min: Kane hits the post! But he was offside anyway. It was a lovely first-time pass from Musiala into the striker, and it was a tight call.
30 min: Sané is offside after Min-jae zips a ball into him on the left.
28 min: Upamecano heads away from danger twice before Sané switches the play from left to Coman on the right.
26 min: Wolf crosses into the box from the right and the ball is headed down for Reus to get a shot away, but it’s an awkward chance and the ball sails over.
25 min: It’s too far out so they just pass it around, and Kane eventually tries a cross but it goes straight out for a goal-kick.
24 min: Sané pulls out his tricks and flicks as Bayern drive up the pitch and they’ve got a free-kick from about 35 yards (?) out.
23 min: Brandt has a shot from about 30 yards out, but sort of half-heartedly, and it goes over.
22 min: A yellow card for Sané who rather petulantly pulls down Reus.
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21 min: Foul on Davies in his own half, and Min-jae pumps the ball long.
19 min: Mazraoui intercepts the ball on the right to shutdown Dortmund’s attack.
18 min: Kane drops deep into his own half to play a long diagonal ball to Coman. That’s just showing off.
16 min: Sané is offside as Musiala, pulling all the strings, plays a through ball into the box.
15 min: Coman drives through the centre but can’t play the perfect ball to Musiala on his right, who is offside.
14 min: Dortmund have plenty of numbers going forward, but Bayern look well-positioned to pick them off on the counter.
12 min: Ryerson cuts in from the left to try and curl one into the top corner from outside the box – but the ball flies high and wide.
GOAL! Dortmund 0-2 Bayern (Kane 9)
Oh my. Bayern are all over them. Musiala counters and plays in Sané on the left, who works a lovely first-time ball across the box and, yes, Harry’s there for his 15th goal of the season.
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8 min: Reus nicks the ball off Davies, but the left-back recovers well to snuff out the danger.
6 min: Bayern have the early goal and they’re dominating possession too, knocking it about with ease. Musiala plays in Coman, who launches over the bar from the edge of the box.
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GOAL! Dortmund 0-1 Bayern (Upamecano 4)
Bayern strike! Upamecano loses his marker and finds himself with a free header inside the six-yard box – he finishes with ease.
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3 min: Musiala’s cross is blocked and Bayern have a corner.
2 min: Bayern move from left to right after Davies attacks down the wing, and begin passing it about at the back.
Let's play!
Dortmund in black and yellow, Bayern in red and white. Harry Kane kicks off!
Yellow flags waving, You’ll Never Walk Alone being belted out – we’re not far away from kick-off. Get yourself a cup of tea quick.
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So it’s a big day for Marco Reus, who has hung around at Dortmund for yonks.
4⃣0⃣0⃣ in Black and Yellow for Marco 🖤💛 pic.twitter.com/4ssi1c7yFW
— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) November 4, 2023
So last weekend was about Jude Bellingham when it comes to Englishmen abroad. Boy, was he special, scoring a brace to win the clásico, the first of those an outrageous thumper from range. Now it’s time to see what Harry Kane’s got up his sleeve.
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John Brewin’s on clockwatch duty if you want to have a quick look at the 3pm kickoffs.
Here’s Jonathan Liew’s excellent preview:
The teams
So Upamecano and Goretzka, who were injury concerns for Bayern, are in the XI. Here’s how it’s looking:
Dortmund: Kobel, Ryerson, Schlotterbeck, Hummels, Wolf, Özcan, Sabitzer, Reus, Brandt, Malen, Füllkrug
Subs: Meyer, Bensebaini, Reyna, Nmecha, Haller, Moukoko, Süle, Adeyemi, Bynoe-Gittens
Bayern: Neuer, Mazraoui, Upamecano, Min-jae, Davies, Goretzka, Laimer, Sané, Coman, Musiala, Kane
Subs: Ulreich, Gnabry, Choupo-Moting, Sarr, Müller, Tel, Krätzig, Pavlović
The teams are in:
🚨 BVB STARTING XI VS. BAYERN 🚨 pic.twitter.com/gsdvdkyde6
— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) November 4, 2023
𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐗𝐈 🆚 @BlackYellow ⚔️#packmas #BVBFCB pic.twitter.com/g7oxtMyevY
— FC Bayern Munich (@FCBayernEN) November 4, 2023
Preamble
Hello, hello, hello and welcome to coverage of the big one in Germany: Borussia Dortmund against Bayern Munich at Signal Iduna Park.
The eyes are on Harry Kane, who seems to be loving life at his new club. Thirteen games have resulted in 14 goals, including his best Becks impression in an 8-0 drubbing last weekend. Bayern remain unbeaten in the league, have a 100% record in the Champions League and Kane’s at the helm for their run at a 12th consecutive Bundesliga title. Oh, and they haven’t lost to these since 2019.
But – yes, there’s a but – Dortmund are very much in this. They too are unbeaten after nine league games, and they’ll be buoyed by the upset Bayern suffered in the week, a 2-1 loss to third-division Saarbrücken in the German Cup. Then there are the names Bayern are missing: Joshua Kimmich is suspended, Matthijs de Ligt is definitely out with injury, and there are concerns over Dayot Upamecano and Leon Goetzka, too. Basically, we’re on for a classic (don’t hold me to that).
I’ll be here with you all the way, with kick-off at 5.30pm GMT. Drop me a line with your thoughts, queries, whatever, whenever. Cheers!
