Rose focused on Bayern visit despite Dortmund rumours
January 6, 2021
Marco Rose’s Borussia Mönchengladbach host Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich in a mouth-watering contest on Friday night. The game comes as rumours gather pace linking Rose to the Borussia Dortmund head coach job.
Image: Norbert Schmidt/dpa/picture alliance
Advertisement
Marco Rose enjoys the big games. The slow revolution that is happening at Borussia-Park under his watch has been punctuated by high voltage home performances against Real Madrid, Shakhtar Donetsk and RB Leipzig this season.
Their next big test comes in the shape of Bayern Munich under the Friday night lights in Mönchengladbach. The champions are looking as imperious as ever at the top of the Bundesliga and, with second place RB Leipzig hosting Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, the league is looking to Gladbach to stop Bayern from running away with it again.
Dortmund covet Rose
However, Rose goes into the game under an even brighter spotlight than usual. Rumours have begun to circulate that Borussia Dortmund might be able to prise the Red Bull graduate away from Gladbach and appoint him as their new head coach in the summer.
Both Borussias are remaining tight-lipped on the rumours. Dortmund's sporting director Michael Zorc said on Sunday that "we have very important games in January. That is our focus. It commands my respect for Borussia Mönchengladbach and also for other clubs not to say another word about it."
Zorc's Gladbach counterpart, Max Eberl, didn't give a centimeter either, telling German television broadcaster that Rose "is at the right club at the moment and that's how it should stay for a long time."
What Eberl wants and what he gets may not be the same thing though, with Dortmund having apparently identified Rose as their number one target to replace Lucien Favre following the Edin Terzic's period as Dortmund's interim coach, which looks set to run until the end of the season.
Can Gladbach stop Lewandowski?
Rose's immediate concern, however, is how to keep Bayern Munich, and specifically Robert Lewandowski, at bay. The FIFA Best player of the year has already scored 19 league goals this season in just 14 games and is on course to break Gerd Müller's all-time record of 40 league goals in a season.
When asked whether he has a specific plan for nullifying Lewandowski, Rose compared the Bayern number nine to Real Madrid's Karim Benzema, and said his team won't change just to keep the Pole quiet.
"I was asked in the press conference before the Real Madrid game whether we can defend against Karim Benzema and I succinctly said yes, you can. Then he scored twice against us," Rose told DW in a virtual press conference on Wednesday.
"He only had a couple of chances but world class strikers will always find space no matter what you do. They will always look for opportunities and use them, so you just need a great day.
"One-on-one, you have to orientate yourself well and know where he is, but we mustn't lose sight of our own game," the 44-year-old coach said. "It doesn't make sense to focus only on one striker. We know who is coming and we have good center-backs to stop him. We also have good defensive midfielders who have the task to face up to the danger and help defend against Lewandowski as best as we can."
Bayern Munich in 2020: A defining year
Bayern Munich swept all before them this year, winning five trophies and setting countless new records along the way — all within Hansi Flick's first year as head coach. Here's a look back at some of the highlights.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/R. Wittek
Thiago’s masterclass in Mainz
On February 1, on a damp and cold day in Mainz, we really started to see Bayern flex their muscles under Hansi Flick for the first time. A 3-1 win at Mainz is routine business for Bayern, but it was a victory that not only saw them return to the top of the Bundesliga for the first time since Niko Kovac’s stormy reign, but one that delivered a superb goal by Thiago Alcantara.
Image: Getty Images/Bongarts/A. Grimm
Hopp, skip and a leap
Bayern showed their extra quality on the extra day of the year. February 29 was the day that Bayern leapt ahead of their title rivals with a 6-0 thrashing of Hoffenheim. But the game is remembered more for the protests of Bayern’s ultras against Hoffenheim owner Dietmar Hopp, which led to the players first leaving the pitch then playing the match out at a walking pace.
Image: Imago Images/Hartenfelser
Auf wiedersehen to fans
Bayern’s last game in front of fans was on March 8, coinciding with Bayern’s 120th anniversary. A massive tifo spanned the Allianz Arena as Bayern marked the occasion with a special kit and, of course, a 2-0 win to extend their Bundesliga lead. Little did anyone know that this would be last time Bayern would play in front of a full house for a very long time.
Image: Alexander Hassenstein/Bongarts/Getty Images
Kimmich's Klassiker
After an 11-week hiatus, the Bundesliga was the first of Europe’s top leagues to return following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bayern returned with a 2-0 win at Union Berlin before heading to Dortmund a week later on May 26 for a decisive Klassiker. Bayern’s class shone through, with Joshua Kimmich’s majestic chip the only goal of a high quality game and effectively the title decider.
Image: AFP/F. Gambarini
Eight straight
On June 16, Bayern traveled to Werder Bremen with the chance to seal their eighth straight Bundesliga title. Bremen were fighting for Bundesliga survival at the time and made it hard for Bayern, but there was no holding them down. Bayern won 1-0 courtesy of Robert Lewandowski to secure their 30th German title and the first silverware of Hansi Flick’s Bayern reign.
Image: picture-alliance/GES/POOL/M. Ibo GüngürL
Double delight
Less than three weeks after winning the Bundesliga, Bayern did the job in the German Cup final too. Attack-minded Bayer Leverkusen headed to Berlin with high hopes, but they couldn’t match Bayern’s scintillating display. David Alaba’s deftly flighted free-kick set the tone for Bayern, with Serge Gnabry and a Robert Lewandowski double securing a 4-2 win and a second title in quick succession.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/R. Wittek
Barca bloodbath
With a domestic double wrapped up, Bayern shifted their focus to the Champions League. Having dealt with Chelsea, Bayern arrived in Portugal for a one-legged knockout format of the competition. They faced Barcelona in the quarterfinals and blew them away 8-2. It was the first time since 1946 that Barca had conceded eight and a scoreline that would send shockwaves around Europe.
Image: picture-alliance/SVEN SIMON/F. Hoermann
Kings of Europe
Paris Saint-Germain, the new-money stars of French football, met Bayern Munich, the German aristocrats, in club football’s biggest game on August 23. Many expected a goal feast but instead it was a high quality game of chess settled by a solitary goal. Kingsley Coman, the former PSG player raised in the suburbs of Paris, scored it for Bayern to reclaim their European crown and secure the treble.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Fernandez
Quadruple
A treble wasn’t enough for Bayern though. After a short break following the late completion of the season, they faced Sevilla, winners of the Europa League, in the UEFA Super Cup in Budapest on September 24. Javi Martinez was Bayern's unlikely extra-time hero but thousands of Bayern fans declined to travel, with Budapest grappling with sharply rising COVID cases at the time.
Image: Bernadett Szabo/Pool/dpa/picture-alliance
23, the magic number
The victory in Budapest was also notable for being Bayern's 23rd straight victory, a new record in European football. They beat the previous record of 22, held by Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid since 2014, but couldn't build on that, succumbing to a surprise 4-1 defeat at Hoffenheim a few days later. However, they amassed a staggering 78 goals during the run, conceding just 16 with 12 clean sheets.
Image: Reuters/A. Hilse
Make that five
Just in case there was any doubt that Bayern were the best team around, Bayern followed up their UEFA Super Cup win less than a week later with victory in the German equivalent. Dortmund were Bayern’s challengers at the Allianz Arena but the Black and Yellows, despite putting up a good fight, lost 3-2. And it was their familiar foe Joshua Kimmich, who delivered the late winning goal.
Image: Christof Stache/AFP/Getty Images
King Lewa
It was another vintage year for Robert Lewandowski. Bayern’s number 9 ended the 2019-20 season with 34 goals, more than anyone in any of Europe’s big five leagues. He also scored 15 in the Champions League, five more than anyone else, and started the new Bundesliga season with 10 goals in his first 5 games — also a record. He was named FIFA Best Men's Player, too.
Image: Marco Donato/FC Bayern/Getty Images/picture alliance
The Flick Effect
Less than a year into the job, Bayern head coach Hansi Flick could bask in the glory of an unprecedented haul of five trophies. The Bundesliga, the German Cup, the Champions League, the UEFA Super Cup, the German Supercup: everything his heart desired. An unparalleled achievement and the best coaching debut season in football history.
