Rampant Dortmund humble Bayern at home
PHOTO | CHRISTOF STACHE From left: Dortmund's midfielder Marco Reus, midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Nuri Sahin, and defender Mats Hummels celebrate after the second goal for Dortmund during the German first division Bundesliga football match between FC Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund in Munich, southern Germany on April 12, 2014. Dortmund won 3-0.
What you need to know:
- Dortmund's 2-0 victory at home to Madrid on Tuesday could not prevent them from bowing out of the Champions League 3-2 on aggregate at the quarter-final stage, but they put that disappointment behind them to stun Bayern in Munich.
- Although Munich coach Pep Guardiola named a full-strength side, it was Bayern's heaviest defeat in any competition since being routed 5-2 in the 2012 German Cup final by Dortmund at Berlin's Olympic Stadium.
BERLIN
Four days after beating Real Madrid in the Champions League, Borussia Dortmund claimed a second major scalp with a convincing 3-0 Bundesliga win at Bayern Munich on Saturday.
Dortmund's 2-0 victory at home to Madrid on Tuesday could not prevent them from bowing out of the Champions League 3-2 on aggregate at the quarter-final stage, but they put that disappointment behind them to stun Bayern in Munich.
Goals by Dortmund midfielders Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Marco Reus and rising star Jonas Hofmann sealed the Allianz Arena win.
"We attacked them early, that is the only way to survive here," said Reus.
"If you turn your back here briefly, it gets very difficult, that was the secret to our success."
A second successive defeat for champions Bayern, who had previously not lost a game all season, allowed second-placed Dortmund to trim their lead at the top of the table to 17 points from 25 just three weeks ago.
"We were very cheeky, very consistent and we could have done things a bit better here and there, but when you beat Bayern 3-0, then everything is pretty perfect," said Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp.
"That was another highly concentrated performance."
FULL STRENGTH
Although Munich coach Pep Guardiola named a full-strength side, it was Bayern's heaviest defeat in any competition since being routed 5-2 in the 2012 German Cup final by Dortmund at Berlin's Olympic Stadium.
And the clubs are on course to meet again in this season's German Cup final on May 17 with Dortmund hosting VfL Wolfsburg in the semi-finals on Tuesday, 24 hours before Bayern entertain second-division Kaiserslautern in the other tie.
Poland star Robert Lewandowski, who will join Bayern on a free transfer at the end of the season, has said he wants to finish his four years at Dortmund with a title and the cup would be his last chance before heading to Munich.
This was Dortmund's second win of the season over Bayern after they beat the Bavarian giants 4-2 in the German Super Cup in July before Munich romped to a 3-0 Bundesliga win at the Westfalenstadion in November.
Dortmund's two impressive wins over the last week have come without them naming a full-strength side.
Klopp opted to start with Lewandowski on the bench in Munich with Gabon international Pierre-Emerick Aubemayang playing up front.
Injuries meant the Dortmund boss was forced to field his third-choice central midfield pairing in the win over Real, but the untested Oliver Kirch and new signing Milos Jojic rose to the occasion.
