Bayern Munich Miss Opportunity to Take Advantage of Leverkusen Blunder with Dortmund Draw

Bayern Munich wasted a golden opportunity to tighten their grip on the Bundesliga title race as they were compelled to a 2-2 draw by arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund at the Allianz Arena on Saturday evening.

The draw followed Bayer Leverkusen’s failure with a goalless home draw against Union Berlin hours earlier, leaving Bayern with a chance to expand their lead at the top of the table.

In a heart-stopping edition of Der Klassicker, Bayern dominated the first half, fashioning a string of chances without scoring. Dortmund ‘keeper Gregor Kobel had an outstanding performance, denying Bayern on a number of occasions to take the game into the break level.

Dortmund struck first shortly after halftime through Maximilian Beier, who finished a quick counter-attack to stun the home crowd. Bayern responded quickly, equalizing through Raphaël Guerreiro, who slotted home against his former club. Serge Gnabry then gave Bayern the lead with a well-timed header, raising hopes that the defending champions would secure all three points.

But Dortmund weren’t done yet. Waldemar Anton capitalized on a rebound within the box in the 75th minute and scored from Manuel Neuer, making it 2-2, a scoreline that held up to the final whistle.

With the draw, Bayern remain six points ahead of second-placed Leverkusen, but with only five matches left in the season, the inability to stretch the gap further might prove costly. Leverkusen, themselves held 0-0 by Union Berlin earlier on Saturday, remain within striking distance if Bayern lose points once again.

Borussia Dortmund, on their part, stay in eighth place with 42 points, carrying on a rollercoaster domestic campaign marked by inconsistency.

Both clubs will shift focus now towards their Champions League quarter-final second legs. Bayern will attempt to reverse a 2-1 first-leg deficit to Inter Milan, while Dortmund have their backs against the wall after being outplayed 4-0 by Barcelona in the first leg.

Bayern travel to Mainz for their next Bundesliga fixture, with Dortmund hosting Werder Bremen. With the championship very much still up for grabs, every point will count as the season speeds toward a cliffhanger climax.