By Abimbola Ogunnaike
Bayern Munich lost 2-0 to Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, 30 March, 2024 their first home “Der Klassiker” loss in a decade, allowing Bayer Leverkusen, who came back to win 2-1 over Hoffenheim, to go 13 points clear on the Bundesliga table
Leverkusen’s victory put the onus on Bayern in Saturday’s late match but the German champions lost at home, Dortmund scoring goals in each half through Munich-born Karim Adeyemi and defender Julian Ryerson.
Adeyemi opened the scoring for the visitors in the 10th minute and Julian Ryerson doubled their advantage late on.
Harry Kane thought he had pulled a goal back with one minute of normal time remaining, but it was ruled offside.
The defeat leaves Bayern 13 points behind leaders Bayer Leverkusen, who beat Hoffenheim earlier on Saturday, 30 March, 2024.
Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso has confirmed he will stay at the club next season, ending speculation he could succeed the departing Thomas Tuchel at Bayern.
The Spaniard looks set to lead Leverkusen to a first league title, with the club now just three wins away from stopping Bayern winning a 12th consecutive Bundesliga.
Dortmund’s win – their first at Bayern in 10 years – has boosted their chances of a top-four finish and they are now three points clear of fifth-placed RB Leipzig.
After hitting a hat-trick in November’s 4-1 win over Dortmund there were high hopes for Kane in the 135th edition of Der Klassiker.
The England captain, who moved to Bayern from Tottenham in the summer, is the Bundesliga’s top scorer this season with 31 goals.
Having missed the Three Lions’ two recent friendlies with an ankle injury, he was deemed fit to start and should have scored twice in the first half, but two close-range headers were off target.
Instead it was Dortmund who struck first when Adeyemi, played through on goal by Julian Brandt, outpaced Matthijs de Ligt before firing past Sven Ulreich.
Eric Dier came close to getting Bayern back on level terms before the break, but he was denied by the outstretched leg of Mats Hummels, who had an outstanding game against his former club.
With Bayern pushing hard for a equaliser it left room for Edin Terzic’s side to counter-attack into and Norwegian full-back Ryerson found himself in acres of space when he swept a composed finish across Ulreich.
Kane had a quiet second half but thought he had headed home Noussair Mazraoui’s cross in the 89th minute, only for a Video Assistant Referee review to rule he was narrowly offside.
Source: BBC football
