German Bundesliga 2011, Week 13: Mario Götze Gives Der BVB A Vital Win

In a tense, enthralling encounter at the Allianz Arena, Borussia Dortmund showed that their early-season issues were well and truly behind them by beating leaders Bayern Munich 1-0, cutting their hosts’ lead, which had looked unassailable as recently as three weeks ago, to a mere two points. It wasn’t the prettiest football – the defending won the day here – but it was a lot of fun to watch, especially after Bayern threw absolutely everything forward following Mario Goetze’s second-half goal.

There was some attacking quality on display, of course, with both sides coming up with some well-worked moves, but both teams’ defences were more than up to the challenge with the first half seeing neither Roman Weidenfeller nor Manuel Neuer tested despite a back-and-forth match. Everyone knew that the game wouldn’t stay chanceless, and the second half was far more open, with Shinji Kagawa seeing his shot well saved by Neuer before Goetze grabbed his goal.

It wasn’t the work of art one tends to associate with the teenager, but it got the job done – an attempted one-two with Kagawa went a bit wrong, but the ball dropped to Goetze’s feet anyway, and he was able to shrug off Jerome Boateng to guide a low left-footed shot into the bottom corner.

Neuer would be beaten again a few minutes later, this time by Robert Lewandowski, but that effort was ruled out for offside and it was Bayern Munich who would do most of the rest of the attacking, forcing Weidenfeller into several good saves (most impressively his one-on-one block against Franck Ribery) and having two penalty appeals bizarrely turned down.

There were only two minutes of stoppage time for Dortmund to navigate and the visitors just about managed it, beating one of the best teams in Europe – admittedly while they were missing Bastien Schweinsteiger – for the third time on the trot. Jurgen Klopp celebrated with the best fist-pump ever.

This are getting exceptionally frenetic in Bayern Munich vs. Borussia Dortmund, a game which has just seen visiting Dortmund take the lead through the figure of transfer rumour darling Mario Goetze. Bayern's response has been very strong - they're doing their level best to blast straight through the heart of Roman Weidenfeller's defence, but it's actually been Dortmund who've come closest to scoring a second.

The defending champions have actually managed to get the ball into the back of Manuel Neuer's net again, with Robert Lewandowski being played clean through by Goetze, rounding the keeper, and slotting home only to see his goal ruled out for offside. The call was correct, but it was the definition of marginal, and Bayern are perhaps lucky it didn't stand. Of course, the home side's response was to go straight back on the attack, with Luis Gustavo forcing Weidenfeller into an excellent save from a long-range drive and then somehow denying Franck Ribery when he was one-on-one against the France winger.

It's still 1-0 here, but if things keep going like this, I wouldn't put that much money on it staying that way.

Well a goal was coming, and it's Borussia Dortmund who've got it after a weird scramble at the edge of the box led to Jerome Boateng losing track of the ball and Mario Goetze sneaking in to slot past Manuel Neuer. There didn't look like there was going to be too much threat when Goetze was in possession outside the box with the entire Bayern Munich defence in his way, and the danger really did seem to be over when his attempted one-two with Shinji Kagawa was popped up in the air thanks to the intervention of Holger Badstuber.

However, it wasn't a proper clearance and Goetze had continued his run, twisting Boateng around as he burst into the penalty area. In a rather fortunate twist, Badstuber's interference caused the ball to land perfectly at Goetze's feet, and he was able to take a touch before sidefooting home past a helpless Neuer. So, it's 1-0 Dortmund and now this game is going to get even crazier. Fun times await.

PS: The announcer's response to that goal was priceless: 'Oh, they are soooo going to buy him'

We're fifteen minutes into the second half of Bayern Munich vs. Borussia Dortmund and we've had our first clear-cut chances of the match from both sides. First it was the hosts' turn to fail to score after Mario Gomez found himself in space just outside the box but could only fire wide of Roman Weidenfeller's goal - a decent chance, that, and one he might well have scored. However, it met with a strong response from the visitors, and when a long ball over the top found Shinji Kagawa it looked as though Dortmund were about to grab the lead.

Then Manuel Neuer stepped up all big, ferocious and bear-like, batting away Kagawa's almost perfect attempted chip to keep the game scoreless. The save bounced to Mario Goetze at the edge of the area and with Neuer out of position the teenager had the chance to volley into an empty (ish - Jerome Boateng was on the line) net, but it was a tough shot to take and fizzed just wide of the post.

So, yeah, this is one of those fun 0-0 games.

Although it's been an exciting match at the Allianz Arena, we're still scoreless between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich. This isn't a case of either team sitting back - both sides are going for it here and have been attacking with real menace. Instead, it's the defences that are holding firm, with Dortmund's in particular having to stay very strong in stopping wave after wave of attacks from the hosts.

That's not to say that Dortmund have been completely on the back foot, though, since the visitors have looked very dangerous whenever they have the ball, but it's been Bayern putting on most of the pressure and they probably should be ahead after Arjen Robben set up Franck Ribery only for the French winger to shoot well over Roman Weidenfeller's goal.

The game could use someone scoring, but it's been pretty fun so far. One can't really imagine either side being particularly happy with a 0-0 draw, and they're certainly not playing like that's what we're going to see. Get ready for what should be an exciting second half.

That should have been 1-0 Bayern Munch. Arjen Robben, back in the team after recovering from a pubic bone infection, has been pretty quiet all day, mostly thanks to Marcel Schmelzer kicking him as hard as possible whenever he sees him, which is frequently. However, Robben's a crafty sort of fellow, and managed to escape his long-haired assailant for long enough to set up Franck Ribery for the Frenchman to shoot from an angle inside the box.

He probably should have scored and he definitely should have tested Roman Weidenfeller, but instead he blasted the ball at least 20 yards over. Yuck. A few minutes after the miss, Ribery had a penalty call turned down after falling over, which he seems displeased with. Borussia Dortmund hadn't made significant inroads into Bayern territory for some time, but they're still a threat - Robert Lewandowski pulled off a nice bit of skill to blow past Philipp Lahm and cross for Kevin Grosskruetz, but Rafinho just managed to clear for a corner. Manuel Neuer wouldn't have stood a chance if that ball had actually reached the back post.

Bayern Munich are starting to pile on the pressure now, with Borussia Dortmund having to defend for their lives as the hosts attempt to turn the screw. A Franck Ribery-inspired attack ends up with the ball ricocheting around Roman Weidenfeller's area until the visitors were finally able to clear and launch an attack of their own, which is eventually thwarted when Shinji Kagawa inadvertently blocked Kevin Grosskreutz's cross.

Most teams going up against Bayern, especially away from home, wouldn't attack like crazy rabid badgers, but Dortmund clearly feel that they can get three points from this match and so are pouring forward whenever they can. So far, it's worked well enough - Bayern have edged proceedings so far but still haven't scored, nor have the come particularly close to doing so. The longer the match goes scoreless, the more likely that Dortmund can nick a goal (and maybe all three points) on the break.

That's three slightly odd calls in a row from the referee now, with Jerome Boateng's handball call dubious, Mario Goetze's free kick been deflected by a Bayern Munich player only to result in a free kick, and then Mario Gomez failing to earn a free kick of his own after being hacked down just outside the area, leaving a promising-looking home attack abandoned in a state of bemusement.

Anyway, we're 20 minutes into the match now and we still haven't seen a shot of note from either the hosts or Borussia Dortmund, which is slightly noteworthy because most teams coming to the Allianz Arena have already shipped three by now. In fact, despite the frenetic pace of play, we haven't really seen a shot of any real note, and Thomas Muller doesn't help matters by dallying for far too long on the edge of the box and allowing himself to be dispossessed. Still 0-0 here.

Both Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund are looking dangerous going forward here, but so far the defences have held out reasonably well and no clear-cut chances have been created. We've had some impressive play, of course, but so far nothing that quite justifies the hype, which ESPN's announcer has gotten rather carried away with, describing this match as 'the best defence vs. the best defence, the best goalscoring lineup vs. the best goal scoring... err'.

Rafinia has decided that the match needed a little bit more spice, as the Bayern midfielder decided to random lyfoul Robert Lewandowski 30 yards out, and that free kick became one from much closer range when Jerome Boateng's hand in the wall blocked the initial free kick. Mario Goetze's second effort was a cheeky effort to put the ball under the wall, but it took a slight deflection from a Bayern boot and went just outside Manuel Neuer's right-hand post and behind for a goal kick (for some reason). It's still 0-0 at the Allianz. but this match will almost certain not be scoreless by the time it finishes.

With so much at stake in the massive Bundesliga clash between Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, the home team have perhaps had the better luck. Arjen Robben was questionable for the match, but has made the starting lineup. Lucas Barrios is apparently not 90 minutes fit, and Jurgen Klopp has stuck with Robert Lewandowski up top. Both teams also are missing key players from the 18-man squad. BVB defender Neven Subotic is out with a broken orbital, while Bayern midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger is out with a broken collarbone. Here are the lineups.

Bayern Munich Lineup (4-2-3-1): Neuer; Lahm, Badstuber, Boateng, Rafinha; Luis Gustavo, Kroos; Müller, Ribery, Robben; Gomez

Borussia Dortmund Lineup (4-2-3-1): Weidenfeller; Schmelzer, Santana, Hummels, Piszczek; Bender, Kehl; Grosskreutz, Kagawa, Götze; Lewandowski

It sounds a bit odd to say this, but BVB have the much stronger bench and have a variety of attacking players they can use to change the game. Nils Pederson and David Alaba aren't quite as intimidating as Ivan Perisic and Barrios. However, 'Kuba' Jakub Blaszczykowski is not available for BVB.

We're underway at the Allianz Arena, and it took less than ten seconds for the first free kick in what looks sure to be a pulsating encounter between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, the two top teams in the Bundesliga. It's Bayern on the attack to start, but Frank Ribery's cheeky foul broke that up and then Dortmund responded, weaving intricate patterns through the midfield before Shinji Kagawa's low cross was cleared behind for a corner, which ultimately came to nothing.

Both sides are attacking and are going to try to win this, which comes as little surprise - if Bayern can earn three points here they'll be in (an even more) commanding position at the top of the table, while defending champions Dortmund desperately need to close the gap with a win here. From the early exchanges, it doesn't look to be beyond them, no matter how fearsome Bayern at at home.

The Bundesliga fixture between FC Köln and Mainz 05, scheduled to kick off at 9:30 am ET, has been called off and will have to be rescheduled for a later date, due to unfortunate events unrelated to football. Match referee Babak Rafati was reportedly discovered in his hotel room after a suicide attempt, according to a report from Sky television in Germany, now confirmed by news.de. Rafati survived, but the league did not feel that it was appropriate to continue with the fixture. 

Obviously, what's important here is Rafati's health and our thoughts are with his family. Rafati's colleagues were reportedly stunned when they heard the news and found themselves unable to take over and referee the fixture. Fans and stadium staff were apparently not informed of the news in a timely fashion, and fans were being let into the stadium for the match as late as 8:45 am ET, 2:45 pm local time, 45 minutes before the scheduled kickoff.

Kaiserslautern were undone by a pair of their old boys as Bayer Leverkusen dispatched them 2-0 at the Fritz Walter Stadium. Although the match was closely contested until the restart, Leverkusen scored quickly through Michael Ballack in the second half and then Sidney Sam - a key figure in their promotion chase in the 2009/10 season - finished the hosts off with a 70th minute strike.

In truth, it never looked particularly promising for Kaiserslautern, who are languishing unhappily in the wrong half of the table after finishing 7th last season - they didn't do much in the first half save hold off Leverkusen's potent attack, and their resolve was broken nine minutes after the break when Michael Ballack's long-range shot was spilled by Kevin Trapp and bounced slowly into the next.

With the goal, the defence crumbled. Sidney Sam's neat finish sealed things off fifteen minutes later, but the second-half scoreline probably flattered the hosts, who played fairly miserably. Bernd Leno was limited to a few easy saves, and Leverkusen ultimately cruised to all three points.