Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayern Munich: Winners and Losers from Der Klassiker
Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich played to a scoreless draw on Saturday in a matchup of the Bundesliga's top two.
Bayern will be happier with the draw, which maintained the visitors' five-point lead atop the table. Dortmund had a chance to cut the gap to two points, but this result keeps Bayern in control for a fourth straight league title.
Here, Bleacher Report selects winners and losers from the match.
Winner: Joshua Kimmich
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Bayern's Joshua Kimmich was without doubt the star of the first half. His all-action style and full commitment were instrumental for the visitors in keeping Dortmund off the scoresheet.
In the 11th minute, Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang burst free on the counter before eventually testing Manuel Neuer with a shot. On first glance, Kimmich appeared beaten, which was no surprise, considering Aubamyang's speed. In reality, however, the Bayern man did enough to force Aubameyang farther to the right than he wanted, making the chance much more difficult.
Aubameyang is an extremely fast player. In keeping close to him, Kimmich did very well for his side.
Then, in the 27th minute, Kimmich produced perhaps the moment of the match. After Aubameyang picked out Marco Reus with a cross from the right, Kimmich won the ball with a crucial last-ditch tackle.
At just 21, Kimmich is an exciting prospect who should contribute for years to come.
Winner: Roman Burki
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Roman Burki had a shaky start to the match but recovered and eventually helped secure the draw for Borussia Dortmund.
In the fifth minute, the goalkeeper flung himself at a Douglas Costa cross but couldn't get any distance on his punch. The ball fell to Thomas Muller, who uncharacteristically fired over the gaping goal. The error should have resulted in the opening strike for Bayern, but Burki escaped because of Muller's surprisingly poor finish.
"Roman Burki once again proving why he's one of the leading causes of heart attacks in the Dortmund region this season," tweeted Stefan Bienkowski.
Burki's nerves settled, however, and he came up with a huge save in the 64th minute, tipping Arturo Vidal's volley onto the bar. Without that intervention, Vidal surely would have scored, and Bayern probably would have won.
Loser: The Title Race
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Saturday's draw kept Borussia Dortmund five points behind Bayern Munich. That's not an insurmountable deficit, but considering the identity of the front-runners, it might as well be 50.
Bayern drop points so infrequently that it's a big story every time it happens. Case in point: The Bavarians lost at home to Mainz midweek, a result that gave this Der Klassiker greater title implications than it would have had otherwise.
Can Dortmund make up a five-point deficit? Yes. Is it likely to happen? Not when it's Bayern Munich they're chasing.
Winner: Manuel Neuer
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After showing Roman Burki some love in a previous slide, we would be remiss if we didn't recognize Manuel Neuer as well. The Bayern goalkeeper wasn't particularly busy, but he was ready when called upon and made one very good stop in the second half to preserve the result.
That save came in the 51st minute, when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang latched onto a pass down the left before placing a low shot on target. Neuer made himself big and kept the ball out.
Add in another save on Aubameyang in the first half, and you have another fine performance from Bayern's and Germany's No. 1.
Loser: Adrian Ramos
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It's probably somewhat harsh to label Adrian Ramos a loser here. After all, he only spent 10 minutes on the pitch as a second-half substitute. However, the Colombian missed a big chance in the 88th minute that surely would have been the winning goal for Dortmund.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang served as the architect, sending in a great cross from the right. Ramos was unmarked at the back post, but he directed a poor header wide of the near post.
In that situation, with the game on the line, Ramos at least should have made the goalkeeper work. Instead, he missed the target.
