By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The spectacular Bundesliga action is continues apace this weekend, with Matchday 26 ready to provide an abundance of entertainment at both ends of the table.
Last time out, league leaders, FC Bayern München, dropped points for just the sixth time this season when the Bavarian giants were held to a 1-1 draw at home to a high-flying Bayer 04 Leverkusen team that sits in third spot. Thomas Müller provided the rarest of moments in Bundesliga history when Bayern’s Raumdeuter – or space invader – scored a very first own goal in his 407-game career in Germany’s top-flight after Niklas Süle had given the hosts the lead at the Allianz Arena.
Robert Lewandowski & Co. will look to get back to their championship chasing ways and build on their nine-point lead this Saturday but Julian Nagelsmann’s men will face solid opposition in the form of TSG Hoffenheim.
The Sinsheimers are high in confidence having racked up a fourth straight victory with a win against 1. FC Köln, Stefan Posch’s header proving enough for Sebastian Hoeneß’s team, who are blazing a trail and can now boast 100 Bundesliga goals in a season-and-a-half under their 39-year-old tactician. “The season is a marathon, and we are only looking from game to game, but of course we want to stay up there and are looking forward to Bayern now,” match-winner Posch said after Saturday’s victory which lifted Hoffenheim up to fourth and has Die Kraichgauer hoping for a first top-four finish since 2017/18.
Borussia Dortmund are also hungry to keep up the pace as they lead the chase to catch the leaders from second spot. With BVB’s encounter against 1. FSV Mainz 05 last weekend rescheduled until 16 March, the Bundesliga’s second-placed side still have ten games to go as they attempt to rein in the mighty Bayern. “We need to do more,” Dortmund attacker Thorgan Hazard said after his side had to settle for a draw against Augsburg the last time they were in action. Marco Rose’s charges can take inspiration from their spectacular finish to 2020/21, when they took more points than any other club in the remaining ten matches.
Arminia Bielefeld will represent a tough challenge for Die Schwarzgelben on Sunday, however, in a game that could see Marco Reus chalk up his 350th competitive appearance in a Dortmund shirt.
The aforementioned Leverkusen, meanwhile, will seek to add to their spectacular home form when they host Köln in the Rheinland derby. Gerardo Seoane’s side are unbeaten in their last seven games at the BayArena and have even won their last three on home soil, scoring a jaw-dropping twelve goals. Attacking sensations Moussa Diaby and Florian Wirtz have been adding plenty to the Bayer cause in the absence of the injured Patrik Schick and the free-flowing hosts will certainly prove a handful for the visiting Billy-Goats and their top-scoring striker, Anthony Modeste, recently named Köln captain for the first time.
Apart from the exhilarating action at the top to look forward to, several teams will be battling out to avoid the drop as we reach the final turn of the campaign. Buoyed by a recent come-from-behind win against Borussia Mönchengladbach, VfB Stuttgart will be keen to keep the pressure on third-from bottom Hertha Berlin when Die Schwaben visit Union Berlin.
Hertha will have their own tricky task at Gladbach while bottom side Greuther Fürth will have their work cut out when they entertain an RB Leipzig side intent on a European finish.