Vincent Kompany and Niko Kovač: The Bundesliga's unbeaten coaches go head-to-head in Der Klassiker
The latest instalment of Der Klassiker between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will see the Bundesliga’s two unbeaten teams, and their two coaches, do battle for what could already be a very important three points in the title race.
Vincent Kompany and Niko Kovač have both had transformative effects since landing in their respective roles, moulding formidable winning machines from teams who, at the time of their appointments, were not where they had hoped to be.
The Belgian arrived in Bavaria with the task of making sure that Bayern’s trophyless 2023/24 campaign was just a blip, while Kovač was ushered in at Signal Iduna Park with the 2024/25 season well under way. His mission? To steer Dortmund’s wayward ship back towards UEFA Champions League football from 11th place in the Bundesliga table.
With 99 goals scored and 25 wins from 34 league games, Kompany achieved his objective in style, securing the Bundesliga title by a 13-point margin. Their tally of 82 points saw Bayern eclipse the previous season’s total by ten, all while conceding 13 fewer goals.
Watch: Vincent Kompany discusses Bundesliga triumph
Even more impressive was the fact that the former Hamburg defender oversaw their transformation after being relegated from the English Premier League with Burnley the season before - hardly ideal preparation for taking charge of one of Europe’s biggest clubs.
Apparently unfazed, the 39-year-old has lost only two of the 40 Bundesliga games he has taken charge of so far. That includes winning the first ten competitive fixtures of this season to claim a new club record.
That is by no means the only metric where Kompany is in a league of his own, though, with his side averaging 3.1 goals per game - the best ratio of any Bayern manager to date.
Watch: Every Bayern goal so far this season
“I would always credit the team,” said a humble Kompany on his early achievements in Germany. “We make a lot of important decisions, that’s true. But I really think that the reason why so many coaches can be successful with so many different styles and ideas is because they have good players.”
There was a similar level of scrutiny on Dortmund’s decision to hire former Bayern coach Kovač, who had been dismissed by Wolfsburg a year earlier with the Wolves 14th in the table after 26 games of the 2023/24 season.
Dortmund were not far off that position themselves when he took the reins at the beginning of February this year. The Black & Yellows were languishing in 11th with only eight wins from 20 games, by which point rivals Bayern had already racked up twice as many victories.
The form that followed may have surprised even Kovač himself, with BVB eventually reaching their goal of Champions League football after storming to nine wins from their remaining 14 games of the season. Only Kompany’s champions accrued more points than Borussia over that period.
“The things I demand are discipline, order, passion, intensity and aggression,” said the BVB boss on his recipe for success. “We have to get both things right: deliver the footballing component to a good level, but also the physical component.”
In the 20 Bundesliga games the Croatian has taken charge of as Dortmund boss, he has won 13, drawn three and lost only four, giving him a winning percentage of 65 in the league – an all-time high among BVB coaches.
Watch: Dortmund in Klassiker form
Coupled with a run to the 2024/25 Champions League quarter-finals, he has gone above and beyond to prove the doubters wrong since taking the position.
His points average of 2.1 per game has him hot on the heels of Kompany’s 2.5, and has his Dortmund side breathing down Bayern’s necks in the league standings ahead of Matchday 7.
The reigning champions sit on 18 points after six matchdays, having won all six of their opening games and scored a record-breaking 25 goals in that time, while Kovač’s men sit on 14 points after registering four wins and two draws - against St. Pauli and RB Leipzig.
Finding a winner will not be easy, with the two sides having only conceded a combined seven goals so far. Dortmund shipped three of their four goals on Matchday 1 before recording four consecutive clean sheets, while hosts Bayern have conceded just three times.
Kovač was trying to downplay his side's chances ahead of the game, praising the "unique achievement" of Bayern's perfect start and saying: "They are the favourites. We are the outsiders who want to hurt our opponents.”
A neutral reading though is that these two German football giants are both at the peak of their powers in the early stages of 2025/26, and Matchday 7 therefore promises to serve up another captivating edition of Der Klassiker.
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