FC Bayern closed in on a record-extending twenty-fifth Bundesliga title with a functional and at times scrappy victory against mid-table Hannover at the HDI Arena, coming back from one goal down to register a safe if not exactly spectacular 3-1 victory with a brace from Thomas Müller. Continue reading Hannover 96 v FCB
27th February 2015 marked the 115th anniversary of the foundation of FC Bayern, and the Red Dragons London gathered in force for what would turn into a memorable birthday party. The evening ended with the presentation of a special “Allianz Arena” cake and a club history quiz, but the main meal – a Friday evening match up against one-time old school rivals 1. FC Köln – helped kicked things off nicely as Bayern scored two goals in each half to stay well on course for a twenty-fifth Bundesliga title. However, despite the convincing 4-1 scoreline it was one of those games where the result doesn’t tell the real story. Continue reading FCB v 1. FC Köln
FC Bayern returned to Bundesliga action with a journey north-west to Paderborn, with normal service being resumed. The home side must surely have taken some heart from Bayern’s lack of sharpness in front of goal against Shakhtar Donetsk in midweek, but any hopes of pulling off a shock were quickly quashed as Bayern once again clicked into gear at a packed Benteler-Arena. Continue reading SC Paderborn 07 v FCB
A 4-1 thrashing in Wolfsburg. A scrappy 1-1 draw with ten men at home to Schalke. A laboured 2-0 win at struggling Stuttgart. Things had not started well for FC Bayern after the winter break, and already there were a few rumblings among commentators, critics and supporters. Four weeks into the Rückrunde the real Bayern suddenly made a reappearance, with poor Hamburger SV feeling the full force of another record-breaking display from Die Roten. Continue reading FCB v Hamburger SV
Coming into their third match of 2015 FC Bayern had yet to register a win, but they finally got off the mark against an uninspired and highly negative Stuttgart side that at the end of the day found themselves rooted to the foot of the Bundesliga table. Having just taken a point from their first two matches of the Rückrunde there was just a little more pressure on Bayern, but after a stodgy opening period the gulf in class between the two teams would finally tell. Continue reading VfB Stuttgart v FCB
FC Bayern’s 4-1 mauling at the hands of VfL Wolfsburg had provided something of a shock to all fans of the club, and the “Englische Woche” fixture against Schalke 04 couldn’t come to soon – if just to get back on track as quickly as possible and get the horror of their first defeat of the season out of their system. While the performance in a chilly Allianz Arena had been a marked improvement on the disaster just three days earlier, things would again not quite go to plan. Continue reading FCB v FC Schalke 04
After what had felt like an eternity during the Winterpause, FC Bayern finally returned to Bundesliga action in a mouth-watering top-two clash with VfL Wolfsburg at the Volkswagen Arena – with the Wolves hoping to narrow the gap at the top of the table and Pep Guardiola’s unbeaten side looking to kick off the Rückrunde by extending their unbeaten record. The Red Dragons London also returned to their Stammtisch in excellent spirits, but by the end of the evening many were left scratching their heads after what was an insipid performance by Die Roten. In short, it had been nothing short of a mauling by the ravenous Wolves. Continue reading VfL Wolfsburg v FCB
The winter break could not have come any sooner for injury-ravaged FC Bayern, but despite having ten players out through injury or illness and four youngsters on the bench they completed an excellent Hinrunde with a hard-fought 2-1 win against an energetic FSV Mainz 05. With the game all set to finish one apiece, Arjen Robben found the back of the ner right at the death to take Bayern to a record forty-five points at the half-way stage of the Bundesliga campaign – surpassing their previous mark of forty-three. Continue reading 1. FSV Mainz 05 v FCB
FC Bayern’s final home game before the winter break ended with a comfortable if slightly underwhelming 2-0 win over relegation-threatened SC Freiburg – more than enough to maintain their unblemished record at the Allianz Arena. There were a few slight injury concerns in a match where Manuel Neuer wouldn’t have to make a single save, but the evening would finish with a spectacular laser light show for the 71,000 crowd. Continue reading FCB v SC Freiburg
With the season approaching the winter break FC Bayern travelled a short distance up the road to take on local rivals FC Augsburg, and in a match that had been tight and well-contested for the best part of an hour the champions were finally able break the shackles to collect three more points – and secure the unofficial title of Herbstmeister – with four excellent goals in the space of of thirteen minutes. Continue reading FC Augsburg v FCB