Bayern Munich are used to reigning over the German championship, but rarely have they suffered so much to clinch the title. At the time of playing the final day of the Bundesliga, Saturday May 27, Thomas Tuchel’s men were 2nd in the standings, two lengths behind Borussia Dortmund. And, to hope to prolong their national supremacy, they had to bet on a faux pas by their rivals. The day for the Bavarians finally went wonderfully: their victory in Cologne (2-1), combined with Dortmund’s draw against Mainz (2-2), offered them an eleventh coronation in a row… and unexpected.
If the hero of the day is called Jamal Musiala, 20, author of the winning goal – and the title – in the 89th minute, the Munich fans can also thank Mainz. Perfectly entered into their meeting against Dortmund, the players of Mainz 05 have put an end to the dream of the Yellow and Black, who have been chasing a league title since 2012.
Perhaps taken by the stakes and the obligation or almost to win, the Borussen conceded two goals at the very start of the match (15th and 24th minutes). Condemned to score three times, they tried a lot (18 shots), managed to equalize in added time thanks to Niklas Süle… but failed to find the net one last time. The scenario is all the more cruel as they finish with as many points as Bayern in the standings (71), only beaten on goal difference.
This disillusion will probably be very difficult to digest, especially for Sébastien Haller. Arrived in Germany in August 2022, the French striker came very close to concluding with a title during a season during which he defeated testicular cancer. But, like his teammates, he cracked against the Mainz goalkeeper: the former Ajax striker missed a penalty early in the game, which would have allowed his team to equalize earlier.
Already departures from Bayern Munich
After ten years of unchallenged reign over his national championship, the Rekordmeister therefore retains his crown at the end of a complicated season from all points of view. Never able to really detach their competitors, the Munich residents also unexpectedly separated from their coach Julian Nagelsmann, at the end of March, to replace him with Thomas Tuchel.
Beaten in the quarter-finals of the Champions League by Manchester City, and at the same stage of the competition by Freiburg in the National Cup, Benjamin Pavard and his teammates could have lived an almost white season, with the German Supercup.
They finally add a new Bundesliga title; the first for Thomas Tuchel, ex-coach of PSG and Chelsea passed by the bench of Dortmund (2015-2017). Frenchman Kingsley Coman, 26, Bayern’s first scorer of the day, has eight trophies in the club’s jersey.
No time to savor this success that the reconstruction has already started in Munich. Bayern parted ways with chairman Oliver Kahn and sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic just minutes after captain Manuel Neuer lifted the trophy.
This last day of the German championship was also an opportunity for the other clubs to decide between the qualifying places in the European Cup. In addition to Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig will play in the next Champions League (3rd), as will Union Berlin (4th). The capital’s players snatched their ticket by beating Wolfsburg (1-0) at home. Freiburg will play the Europa League and Bayer Leverkusen the Europa Conference League.
At the bottom of the table, Hertha Berlin and Schalke go down to D2, where they may be accompanied by Stuttgart. By finishing 16th, the team will have to play a play-off against the third in D2 to hope to keep its place in the elite.