Bayern Munich are only five points ahead of Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga. Fighting to retain their league title, Bayern have a tally of 69 and look set to lead the pack until the very last whistle of the season. However, chipping away at their fixtures and on the heels of the German giants, Thomas Tuchel’s Dortmund have 64 points in the bag and really might have what it takes to give Bayern cause for concern.
The more I think about the campaigns of both teams, the more I feel Dortmund would be more deserving of the trophy. So, in brief, here’s a bit of a summary about why they probably should be triumphant above Bayern.
Borussia Dortmund have been utterly relentless, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang emerging as their very dogged talisman. They have always been prone to snapping up a few true greats over the course of many seasons, including Mario Götze, Robert Lewandowski and Marco Reus – the Robin to Aubameyang’s Batman.
Aubameyang has netted on 22 occasions during his team’s Bundesliga bid, establishing himself as one massive force to be reckoned with. It is almost for this reason alone that Dortmund would be best suited to hoisting the trophy, really as a very fitting and necessary pat on the back to the Gabonese hotshot.
However, when glancing at statistics, the figures point in favour of two rather special Bayern favourites. Lewandowski has slotted the ball in 25 times this season, whilst Thomas Müller has found the net on 19 instances. This is remarkable stuff, and puts Aubameyang between two very learned opposing heavyweights. The records, therefore, place these men in roughly the same territory, but it is the nature of Aubameyang’s fast-paced feet and rocket-like shots that make his contributions that bit more dazzling. His alluring nature on the pitch is quite inspiring, and has been building and building for in excess of a year now. His calibre ought to translate into his club actually winning a division title. Plus, Lewandowski and Müller have been enjoying the commendations for some time now. It’s almost akin to many wanting Leicester City to win the Premier League because of Jamie Vardy and vice versa; Aubameyang is heroic in the same sense, just on German soil.
Borussia Dortmund really are revelling in one of their most fruitful seasons in history. In 27 games, they’ve stacked up 20 enthralling victories, four draws and three losses, which is no mean feat at all. Although previous manager extraordinaire, Jürgen Klopp, aided them to a seventh-place finish last year, players might have been apprehensive as to how the team would cope under a new boss during the 2015/16 spell. However, obviously under fresh tenure, things have been really bright since August – especially in the prior handful of months. Perhaps the injection of different management was exactly the change that the squad required.
It’s pretty clear that the real crux of the great Dortmund form is Aubameyang’s flawless ability. He seems to be able to turn any cross, pass or tackle into something quite mesmerising, especially if assisted by Marco Reus. Of course, Reus is a renowned goal machine, too.
So, despite the stats and Bayern’s overt dominance in the Bundesliga, I have a real urge to support Dortmund to the bitter end. They just exude what the Bundesliga is all about, and so they really deserve to break Bayern’s chain this year.
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