When BVB brutally felt Bayern's fury
"Maybe the team should go for a drink. That was often the right approach in my time with Augenthaler, Lerby, Dieter Hoeneß, Michael Rummenigge and Nachtweih. We performed well the next day." Before matchday 12 of the 2003/04 season, Lothar Matthäus seemed to know exactly what FC Bayern would need in its difficult situation. Shortly beforehand, Oliver Kahn had once again complained that his team had "no balls". And Lothar Matthäus had also recognized that Bayern had a problem: There was no one there - who would "kick people's asses" like he used to. Because for him it was clear: "I would have a lot to do now."
For the 1990 world champion, there was actually only one legitimate successor for himself at Bayern at the time: Jens Jeremies. But as the Görlitz native was mostly just a substitute after an injury scare, he was not yet able to fill the required role. The media had pinned their hopes on another man at the time, but Michael Ballack had problems bringing his skills to the pitch in the fall of 2003. Matthäus was nevertheless a fan of the man with the number 13 shirt, but criticized the lack of consistency in his performances: "Sometimes he dips, then suddenly he shines."
Lothar Matthäus as a prophet who knows a lot about Bayern anger
Bayern had just survived a crisis at the beginning of November 2003. Away from home, they had let the Royal Blues get the better of them in a 2-0 defeat at Schalke and during the week they had even lost 2-1 at home to Olympique Lyon in the Champions League. The mood at Säbener Straße was accordingly. Uli Hoeneß demanded that "everything that does not serve FC Bayern should be put on the back burner". But Lothar Matthäus, who had only left his Munich club three years earlier ("Somehow my heart still beats Bavarian"), was certain: "Despite all the talk of a crisis - this will be a clear victory on Sunday. Dortmund will feel the Bayern fury!"
The situation at BVB was somewhat better in the fall of 2003. They had managed to beat HSV 3-2 the previous weekend after trailing 2-0. But during the week they only managed a 2-2 draw against FC Souchaux in the UEFA Cup. At least they had managed to move one place ahead of Bayern in the table thanks to their success against Hamburg. However, both teams were only in fourth and fifth place at this point in the season. Like today, VfB Stuttgart and Bayer Leverkusen were right at the top - along with SV Werder Bremen. Nevertheless, BVB manager Michael Meier was cautiously optimistic that they would finally be able to take something home to the Olympiastadion: "Of course, we can't go out and say that we're going to sweep Bayern off the pitch. But our young team certainly has what it takes to hold its own."
Nice game, but Bremen will be champions
However, nothing came of it. After the game, which the Munich side won 4:1, the football magazine "Kicker" wrote: "FC Bayern deserved to win against Dortmund, who were severely short of substitutes and also lost debutant Brzenska after 43 minutes with a yellow card." Matthäus' suspicion that Bayern's fury would strike was confirmed. And one man in particular had shown his particularly angry side that day: Michael Ballack.
After just three minutes, the midfield strategist had sought direct contact with the BVB goal for the first time when he hit a free-kick just inside the left-hand post. But the whole discussion about him was over when he scored in the 27th minute to make it 1-0 for Bayern. Afterwards, "Kicker" rated Ballack's performance as 1 and summed it up: "He demanded every ball, he got every ball, he hit the post once and the goal once and could only be stopped by fouls." In addition to Ballack, Willy Sagnol, Hasan Salihamidžić and Claudio Pizarro also scored for Bayern, with BVB conceding a goal from Jan Koller. FC Bayern was back on track. The record champions had taken out all their pent-up anger on Borussia Dortmund's young squad.
By the end of the season, however, both teams had lost out in the championship race. However, it was not VfB Stuttgart or Bayer Leverkusen, who were still in the top two places in the table after match day 11, but the (laughing) third-placed team, SV Werder Bremen, who eventually became champions of the 2003/04 season. Incidentally, with a spectacular victory for Bremen ("Champagne, water, Brazilian beer, everything today", Ailton) on match day 32 in Munich. But that's another story altogether!
In the following season, Michael Ballack, who had shown his aggressive side against Borussia Dortmund, became a crucial player for FC Bayern, often leading the team with his dominating performances.
Following the victory over BVB, Lothar Matthäus, now a pundit, often praised the team for its fiery spirit and the impact Ballack had on the field, drawing comparisons to his own playstyle.
Source: www.ntv.de
