"Borussia Dortmund must be perfect to beat Bayern Munich" - Lucien Favre
Borussia Dortmund manager Lucien Favre has said the title race will be “completely open” after Saturday’s Klassiker against Bayern Munich – but that his side need a “perfect” performance to win.
Dortmund travel to face the defending champions protecting a two-point lead at the top of the table, and many observers feel a win for either side could prove decisive with only seven games to go in the thrilling 2018/19 season.
The visitors returned to the summit after Bayern were surprisingly held to a 1-1 draw in Freiburg last time out. Favre, though, thinks there will still be time for more twists and turns no matter who comes out on top in a “special” game this weekend.
“I think that if we win, nothing is decided yet,” the Swiss coach said at Thursday’s pre-match press conference.
“If we draw, nothing is decided. And if Bayern win, then it will still be completely open.”
Favre’s desire to play down the importance of the fixture – which will be broadcast live in over 200 countries - is understandable. He will be conscious that a five-point advantage with six games to play would give his side a vital cushion, but he also stressed that BVB would have to be at their very best to earn a win in Munich.
“We have to put in a top performance and do everything perfectly if we want to win,” the 61-year-old said. “That’s clear.”
Dortmund are set to be without Achraf Hakimi for the rest of the season, but Favre also revealed that 16-goal frontman Paco Alcacer is doubtful for the Bayern game with an arm injury.
“It’s difficult to say now, but we’ll see tomorrow after training,” Favre said of Alcacer. “It could be difficult, but the chance is there that he’ll play. We’ll see tomorrow in training.”
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The same goes for full-back Lukasz Piszczek, who has made a timely return to training, and fellow defender Abdou Diallo, who was forced off in last weekend’s 2-0 home victory over Wolfsburg.
Dortmund won a thrilling first meeting against Bayern 3-2 in November, and sporting director Michael Zorc was keen to highlight that the five-time Bundesliga champions also have a decent recent record in Munich. Like Favre, however, he believes that the league leaders need to improve if they are to have their destiny in their own hands going into the final sprint.
“We already showed in the home game that we can beat them, and that we can always come back,” Zorc said.
“We also had a look back over the last few years. I think that since 2011 we’ve won five times – including in the cup – in Munich. But I don’t think the current players are all that interested in the last few years, and how the statistics are looking.
“We need a top performance to do well there. That’s quite clear. We need to show courage – I don’t think you can just defend. We need a top performance, and overall a better showing than we offered last week.”
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