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Carlo Ancelotti’s rotation worked to perfection as Bayern Munich absolutely dominated Borussia Mönchengladbach for a 2-0 victory on Saturday. The win was Bayern’s first in the Bundesliga since beating Hamburg back on September 24.
The big takeaway from the player rotation is that this squad performs far better with two actual wingers on the field instead of shoehorning Thomas Müller onto the field. Arjen Robben and Douglas Costa controlled the first half of the match, terrorizing Gladbach’s defense on the left and right sides of the park.
Bayern got their opener after the quarter hour when Rafinha, who is certainly making the case for more minutes at right back, crossed the ball into the box which was met with a powerful header by Arturo Vidal. It was a classic performance by the Chilean, and he’s proving that this Bayern team goes as he goes.
Costa was rewarded on his first start since returning from injury with a goal. The tricky Brazilian brought down a David Alaba cross that missed everyone in the box with his chest and shot past Yann Sommer to make it 2-0 for Bayern.
Gladbach had their best opportunity in the 70th minute. A cross to the far post found Hahn, but his shot hit the post and bounced away. Aside from this, they rarely generated any offense during the match, seemingly content to absorb all of the pressure that Bayern wanted to give them on the day.
The result moves Bayern three points clear at the top of the table ahead of Hertha Berlin. However, RB Leipzig play on Sunday with the opportunity to reduce the lead back to two.
Match Details
Bayern Munich (2-0) Borussia Mönchengladabach
FCB: Arturo Vidal (16), Douglas Costa (30)
Bayern XI: Neuer; Alaba, Hummels, Martinez, Rafinha (Kimmich 83); Thiago, Alonso, Vidal; Costa (Müller 73), Lewandowski, Robben (Sanches 80)
BMG XI: Sommer; Korb, Elvedi, Vestergaard; Wendt (Schulz 65), Kramer, Strobl, Johnson; Hoffmann (Jantschke 45), Stindl, Hahn (Herrmann 78)