Bayern Munich defeat Borussia Dortmund 5-4 on penalties (FT: 2-2)
Bayern Munich defeated Borussia Dortmund 5-4 on penalties to bag the showpiece trophy – the DFL Supercup. The visitors came from behind twice to draw 2-2 with Peter Bosz’s men, courtesy of Lewandowski’s eighth goal against his former side and a Burki own goal which cancelled out Pulisic and Aubameyang’s strikes.
The match, played at the Signal Iduna Park, was a thrilling contest right from the very beginning, and Bayern’s lacklustre displays from their earlier friendlies threatened to follow them here as well, as some sloppy play in the first few minutes lead to Lewandowski shooting high over the bar, which was then followed by Dortmund’s opener. Vidal made a risky back pass to Javi Martinez, who couldn’t maintain possession as Pulisic pinched the ball and after a good run put it past Ulreich with a sumptuous effort. Their lead, however, lasted only for five minutes as Bayern scored the equaliser in the 18th minute. Sebastian Rudy’s driven lobbed pass beat the entire Dortmund defence and fell to Kimmich, who skillfully beat teenager Dan-Axel Zagadou and completed a pinpoint low cross for Lewandowski to fire past Burki to level the scores. Neither team could muster another goal in an entertaining but ineffective first half for both sides.
Hans-Joachim Watzke, Dortmund’s Chief Executive, had stated prior to the match that teen sensation Dembele was worth more than 100m euros, but the reported Barcelona target put in a below-par performance which was capped off with a shockingly wide sliced volley in the 48th minute. Corentin Tolisso, Bayern’s new signing, was also culpable of missing a great chance as he failed to lob Burki minutes later. Borussia then scored their second to regain the lead, as they broke free from Lewandowski’s cross with lightening speed as Rode fed Dembele, whose pass was met with a lethal strike from Aubameyang into the top corner. While many thought that Dortmund were running away with the trophy, there was still some late drama left in the match as a penalty box scramble by Burki after a Kimmich strike gifted Bayern the equaliser in the 88th minute.
Ending at 2-2 in normal time, the match went to penalties, which Bayern won 5-4, to win their first trophy of the season. Burki saved Kimmich’s spot kick, but Bayern goalkeeper Sven Ulreich, who is deputising for an injured Manuel Neuer, saved two penalties as he became the hero of the night by thwarting Rode and Bartra from the spot.
Winning the first piece of silverware of the season was a welcome sight for Ancelotti, whose men had lost four matches out of five in a woeful pre-season. This win could signal an upturn in his side’s fortunes at the perfect moment, while his counterpart Bosz failed to guide his side to a win in his first competitive game in charge of his club, and he lamented his side’s sloppiness in the final few minutes which ultimately lost them the match. Even though his side now trail Bayern’s six Super Cup wins compared to their five, they did get a huge relief after the match as reportedly unsettled superstar forward Aubameyang confirmed that he would be staying put at the club and won’t be transferring to another club for at least this transfer window.
