DFB-Pokal Win Shows Why Borussia Dortmund Are Germany's Best Side Right Now

Borussia Dortmund followed Bayern Munich to the quarter-finals of the DFB-Pokal on Wednesday evening, thanks to a deserved 2-0 win over in-form FC Augsburg away from home. The two biggest clubs in Germany remain on a collision course for silverware not only in the cup but also in the Bundesliga. Bayern are five points ahead of the Black and Yellows in the league, with one matchday to go before German football embarks on its month-long hiatus they call the "Winterpause."

In the round of 16, one of the two sides won because of their system, and the other needed a moment of individual brilliance. More or less the same thing goes for the teams' Bundesliga fixtures on the last weekend: One of them won their game at home thanks to their ability to outplay an ultra-defensive opponent, and the other relied on their goalkeeper keeping them in the match before one long ball decided the game. 

Surprisingly, it's Dortmund's system that is producing the goods at the moment—and not Pep Guardiola's at Bayern. At this snapshot in time, the Black and Yellows are clearly the best side in German football.

CHRISTOF STACHE/Getty Images

That is, of course, in large part down to Bayern's numerous injuries to key players. In the cup tie against Darmstadt alone, they were missing so many players that they only had four outfield players on the bench. With David Alaba, Medhi Benatia, Philipp Lahm, Mario Gotze, Franck Ribery, Arjen Robben and Douglas Costa missing through various injuries, Bayern were without no fewer than seven potential starters.

Dortmund, meanwhile, only missed Marco Reus from the lineup that has been so impressive all season.

Whereas Bayern's game looked "plodding and pedantic" and "dull" for the entirety of the match, per Ryan Cowper of Bavarian Football Works, Dortmund turned it on in the second half and showed no weakness in an impressive showing against an Augsburg side that was riding an emotional high wave after two last-minute winners in Europe and the league.

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BVB get the win, and advance to the quarter-finals. Deserved, they again prove that few, if any team can stop their attack when in form.

— Marco Conradie (@MarcoConradie10) December 16, 2015"

The Black and Yellows took control over a difficult match and dispatched Augsburg with relative ease. The Swabians had done what more teams should do against Dortmund: They pressed high up the pitch and took away passing lanes from their opponents' midfield trio of Ilkay Gundogan, Julian Weigl and Gonzalo Castro. 

Speaking to German broadcaster ARD after the game, captain Mats Hummels said (via the club's website): "The opponent ended up getting exhausted, they lost concentration for a moment, they took one step less. Augsburg really gave a lot in the first half. We knew that we had to stay patient. We were very concentrated in the way we played, we did not often lose the ball in dangerous areas."

CHRISTOF STACHE/Getty Images

That Dortmund remained calm and showed the required patience is a sign that the team believes in the system they're playing, as ESPN FC's Stefan Buczko noted:  "Post-match, goalkeeper Roman Burki mentioned what was the key element to his team's win: Routine—or automatism, as it's called in Germany. The trust in one's own abilities is hardly ever shaken, which is why BVB managed to pull through with a routine win in the end."

That trust in the system and the ability of every squad member to produce is what sets Dortmund apart right now—even from Bayern. The Bavarian giants are looking forward to the winter break, as Cowper noted: "Even Thiago Alcantara couldn't resurrect Bayern Munich in this match. After his introduction, it was just more of the same dull football that had preceded it. Thank goodness the winter break and the return of so many players is almost here."

Dortmund, on the other hand, probably wish there was no winter break in Germany and that they could have their second crack at Bayern as soon as possible. The 5-1 battering at the Allianz Arena was the only game in the campaign where Dortmund looked positively hopeless to get anything out of the game.

Right now, one would have to give the edge to the Black and Yellows.

Lars Pollmann is a featured columnist writing on Borussia Dortmund. He also writes for Yellowwallpod.com. You can follow him on Twitter.