Bundesliga 2011, Week 15: Bayern Munich Thump 10-Man Werder Bremen

Borussia Mönchengladbach did not have Marco Reus in their team on Saturday, but they were able to save a point without them, as they performed well in an impressive 1-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund. Gladbach did well to get forward, keep possession and create shots while maintaining their shape after losing the ball, as Lucien Favre’s men showed why they’re the most improved side in the Bundesliga yet again.

Robert Lewandowski scored Dortmund’s only goal, heading in a great corner kick by Mario Götze in the 40th minute. Gladbach were very good at denying Dortmund open play chances in the first half and were a bit unlucky to go into the locker room down a goal.

For 60-plus minutes, Werder looked like they had a chance to nick a draw, but at the end of the match, they completely lost their composure and the score reflects that.

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Borussia Mönchengladbach star Marco Reus couldn’t get fit in time for the clash against his old side Borussia Dortmund, and they’re likely ruing those issues at the moment. Gladbach have performed very well, keeping organized and denying BVB opportunities from open play, but they’ve scored on a corner kick and lead the hosts 1-0 at halftime.

Aside from their poor set piece defending, Gladbach have been perhaps the better side on the afternoon. Dortmund have not had a high volume of shooting chances and the possession has been about 50-50 so far. The Gladbach midfield has proven harder to get past for Dortmund, while Gladbach Marc-Andre ter Stegen has had fantastic command of his penalty area.

The goal came in the 22nd minute on the counter-attack, with David Alaba providing the assist. However, this was a goal much more about the individual effort of the goal-scorer than the man who provided the pass, as Ribery brilliantly turned both Werder central defenders inside-out, creating a massive shooting lane. Sebastian Mielitz didn’t even move as the ball went low and into the corner to his right.

Werder’s best play has come when they’ve gotten the ball wide, but they’ve done very little of that. Marko Marin’s impact has been minimal and while Aaron Hunt has been solid, he looks frustrated at his lack of help on most forward moves.

While Week 15 of the Bundesliga doesn’t feature any marquee matchups to the degree of the Revierderby, there are a number of interesting matches featuring highly-placed teams. Borrusia Dortmund and Bayern Munich will both be tested this week, as they face off against teams who have made surprise runs into the top four.

Due to injuries and their struggles with juggling Champions League with the league, Bayer Leverkusen have dropped to sixth place in the Bundesliga. However, as Ross Dunbar wrote for SB Nation Soccer, they are a young team on the rise and there’s no reason to believe they won’t be competing for European spots all season. On Friday, they take on a ninth placed Hoffenheim team on the fringes of European contention. Hoffenheim will be without Roberto Fermino and Chinedu Obasi, who were both suspended for disciplinary reasons, but Bayer will have one eye on European action ahead.