Bundesliga: Bayern look to bounce back

Bayern Munich host Ingolstadt in the first Bundesliga derby between the clubs on Saturday full of respect for their Bavarian neighbours, but determined to bounce back from their shock defeat at Monchengladbach.

Published : Dec 11, 2015 19:49 IST , Berlin

Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery made his first appearance for the team since March in the midweek Champions League match against Dinamo Zagreb.
Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery made his first appearance for the team since March in the midweek Champions League match against Dinamo Zagreb.
lightbox-info

Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery made his first appearance for the team since March in the midweek Champions League match against Dinamo Zagreb.

Bayern Munich host Ingolstadt in the first Bundesliga derby between the clubs on Saturday full of respect for their Bavarian neighbours, but determined to bounce back from their shock defeat at Monchengladbach.

Pep Guardiola's Bayern crashed to their first German league defeat of the season last Saturday when they were humbled 3-1 by third-placed Gladbach.

It was only Bayern's second loss of the season, following a Champions League defeat at Arsenal, and Bayern are determined to protect their five point lead in the table.

“We have to play well and fight for everything, it won't be an easy game,” said Robert Lewandowski, whose goals sealed a 2-0 win at Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday with Bayern in the last 16 in Europe. “We have to keep our concentration and score the first goal, and that should lay the foundations for us to have some fun.”

Ingolstadt deserve Bayern's respect with a symmetrical record of five wins, five draws and five defeats in their first season in Germany's top-flight and are 11th in the table with 20 points.

Coach Ralph Hasenhuettl has kept most of the side which won last season's second-division title and they have drawn with top sides Wolfsburg, Schalke and Monchengladbach so far.

“They deserve to be where they are in the league and I hope they stay up,” said Bayern captain Philipp Lahm, who played alongside Hasenhuettl in the Bavarian youth football. “They don't just play defensively and don't just stand at the back.”

Second-placed Borussia Dortmund, who lag five points behind Bayern, want to keep the pressure on Munich with a win at home to Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.

Gabon striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored 17 of Dortmund's 42 goals in 15 games this season, while German striker Marco Reus has weighed in with eight more.

Mid-table Frankfurt have won just one of their last ten games, while Thomas Tuchel's Dortmund have lost just twice all season in Germany's top flight after being drubbed 5-1 by Bayern and stumbling to a shock defeat at Hamburg.

Chicharito's goal haul

Fresh from their Champions League exits in midweek, Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Monchengladbach meet at the BayArena with the teams in contrasting form.

Roger Schmidt's Leverkusen have won one of their last eight games in all competitions while Gladbach are unbeaten in their last nine German league games under new coach Andre Schubert.

Unlike the team he plays for, Leverkusen's Javier Hernandez is in form and the ex-Manchester United and Real Madrid striker has scored 12 goals in the last 11 games.

Bayer have only failed to score twice in their last 32 games against Gladbach, one of which was a 3-0 defeat when the sides last met.

Fresh from qualifying for the last 16 of the Champions League for the first time in the club's history by beating Manchester United 3-2 last Tuesday, fifth-placed Wolfsburg host Hamburg looking to build on their midweek success after crashing to a 2-1 defeat to Dortmund at the Volkswagen Arena last Saturday.

Fixtures

Mainz vs Stuttgart, Bayern Munich vs Ingolstadt, VfL Wolfsburg vs Hamburg, Werder Bremen vs Cologne, Hoffenheim vs Hannover 96, Darmstadt vs Hertha Berlin, Bayer Leverkusen vs Borussia Monchengladbach, Augsburg vs Schalke 04, Borussia Dortmund vs Eintracht Frankfurt.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment