DORTMUND CLOSE THE GAP

Reigning Bundesliga Champions Borussia Dortmund closed the gap on leaders Bayern Munich to just two points with a dramatic 1-0 victory in Munich, despite a late Bayern charge.

The main talking point before the game was the return of Bayern talisman Arjen Robben, however there were to be no celebrations for the flying Dutchman as his side failed to create chances in the first half, and left their assault too late to trouble the on-form Champions.

Mario Gotze was the man who provided the game's only goal, taking advantage of a cruel deflection to slip the ball into the bottom corner.

The first half was a tight affair, with neither side able to take control of the game, and each defence held strong to prevent many clear cut chances. Rafinha cleared one Dortmund effort off the line with Bayern keeper Manuel Neuer beaten, while Bayern's French midfielder Franck Ribery had a good chance during the first half which he failed to keep under the bar.

Dortmund arguably deserved to take the lead after taking control of the game at the start of the second half, Gotze missing an excellent chance to slot home a rebound after Neuer pulled off an excellent save from Kagawa.

After Gotze finally put Dortmund in front just after the hour mark, Bayern battled to get back into the game, with Dortmund keeper Roman Weidenfeller pulling off a string of saves to keep his side in front, firstly from Luiz Gustavo's blistering effort, before stopping Ribery.

Bayern had another couple of chances to draw level in the last ten minutes, and those familiar with Bayern Munich betting wouldn't have been surprised if they had managed to pull a last-minute equaliser out of the bag.

Badstuber coming close with a curling free kick, and substitute Nils Peterson only narrowly missed the target with two minutes remaining. Monchengladbach also took advantage of Bayern's defeat to move to within two points of the leaders.

Bayern now face Villareal in the Champions League on Tuesday night, with the team keen to get a result - not least to get back on the straight and narrow. A win will secure their place in the next round of the Champions League, but anything less will leave them needing to take points off Manchester City, who are one of the best Premier league bets this season. Bayern need a result against Villareal!