Finally another real summit! After years of sole rule by FC Bayern Munich, the Bundesliga will once again experience a league duel at eye level on Saturday. In the top game of the series champions at arch rivals Borussia Dortmund (6.30 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Bundesliga and Sky), this time it's not just about pride and prestige, but above all about leading the table. Accordingly, one or the other announcement of war from both camps was made in the course of the week. "They should come," said BVB boss Hans-Joachim Watzke. Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann picked up the ball. "That was already open visor," he said: "But we will come, I can promise."

With only one point ahead of Corona-shaken Munich go into the duel in front of only 15,000 spectators - and without their leader Joshua Kimmich and possibly without his partner Leon Goretzka.

BVB is therefore the great hope of all neutral fans who are hoping for an end to the nine-year series of titles from Munich.

Erling Haaland is not fit for 90 minutes after a total of 40 days injury break, but he is for the starting line-up.

And thus ready for the eagerly awaited top scorer summit with Robert Lewandowski, who wants to make an impression again after missing the Ballon d'Or.

"A game with a signal effect"

The duel not only casts a spell over BVB and Bayern fans. “These are really great prerequisites for the league. The Bundesliga is often criticized for saying that it might not be that exciting. Tomorrow evening at 6.30 p.m. it will be very exciting, ”said Nagelsmann on Friday. And admitted: "I noticed last night that I was a bit more tense than before other games."

His colleague Marco Rose felt that too. "Tomorrow the German championship will not necessarily be decided," he said on Friday: "But it is a game with a signal effect." The last six duels were all won by Bayern. “We haven't been successful for so long,” said Rose, who had defeated FC Bayern in both his two years in Mönchengladbach but in both home games: “Now we have the chance again and we want to take it. We managed to stay tuned this far. Now we have them in our own stadium and we want to try to hurt them. ”Preferably through Haaland. "We're trying to stop him," said Nagelsmann. "BVB has the same task: to stop the best striker in the world."

Although both sides have recently also felt unrest - the Dortmund team after the Champions League, the Munich team due to the ongoing issue of unvaccinated professionals and the turbulence surrounding the Qatar issue at the annual general meeting - both go into the league with a broad chest. Hit.

"This is a special game," said Bayern attacking player Leroy Sané: "We want to show everyone that we are number one."

Apart from the sporting challenge, there were no provocations in advance.

Also from the sports directors Michael Zorc and Hasan Salihamidzic, who did not speak out after their public argument three months ago.

"The subject is settled for me", but Zorc assured: "And that for a long time."

Nevertheless, Rose tries to be relaxed.

When he was asked about an alleged training dispute between his players Thomas Meunier and Raphael Guerreiro, he initially asserted that he had "never noticed".

Then he laughed, “I got the impression they were talking about the Christmas vacation.

Maybe they didn't agree where to go.

Maybe one of them took the flight away from the other. "

Either way, “the mood was relaxed afterwards,” said Rose: “Both of them had dinner together, everything was okay.” Nagelsmann, at least in individual moments, was also more relaxed.

He put the chances of a deployment of Goretzka, who was injured on the patellar tendon, at 60:50 to express his optimism.

However, Serge Gnabry apparently had to end the training early.

Rose finds it bitter that instead of the hoped-for 67,000 or at least 27,000, only 15,000 fans can ultimately be there.

People kept coming back and we won seven home games in a row.

That would have done us particularly well in this game. ”Nagelsmann also stated that he would rather play in front of a full house.

Watzke also wants to reinterpret the embarrassing Champions League end as a good omen.

“It has all happened before,” he said: “I can still remember very well that we were eliminated from the Champions League in the 11/12 season in autumn.

We had the same discussion and disappointment.

But we turned it into positive energy.

We have to do that now. ”In the end, BVB under coach Jürgen Klopp won the title and also the cup with a furious 5-2 final win against Bayern.