Kovac calls the Klassiker “the biggest match in the Bundesliga”

“It is the biggest match in the Bundesliga”: the phrase captures the importance Niko Kovac places on the Klassiker, with Bayern and Borussia Dortmund each on 17 points after seven rounds and level at the top of the table. Harry Kane goes into the fixture with Bayern after winning the Ballon d’Or.

For Kovac, the level standings make the occasion “even more exciting”, but he says his team will need “90 minutes at the highest level” to get a good result. The Borussia Dortmund coach also believes his side will not have more possession than Bayern. “We will have to cover a lot of ground and double, even triple, the marking. That said, we are Borussia Dortmund and we have our own ambitions,” he said.

Kovac’s stated approach to stopping Kane is built around collective effort. He has urged his players to “work together” against the striker, whom he called “sensational”. The coach also said the Ballon d’Or had not come for free and that Kane had taken another major step forward since arriving in Germany in 2023. Stopping him would not be a matter of marking him one-on-one, Kovac stressed: “We have to do it together. It takes 11 players, and only with 11 top-level players can you achieve something in Munich.”

For Bayern, Serge Gnabry describes the fixture as a meeting between the two best teams and says his side wants to win and remain at the top. The club’s striker also calls it his most important Bundesliga match of the season. He hopes to add to his scoring tally against Borussia Dortmund: he has six goals in seven matches played since arriving at the Allianz in 2023.

Borussia Dortmund’s players are expressing ambition without claiming their team has already reached its best level. Nico Schlotterbeck acknowledges that the side is not yet playing as well as it can, while pointing to its improvement. Felix Nmecha, meanwhile, highlights the excitement surrounding the major fixture. Joey Veerman says his team will need to win many individual duels to keep pace with Bayern.

The Klassiker also comes with an individual accolade in the spotlight. Borussia Dortmund does not want to be a bystander at Kane’s celebration, while the absences of Luis Díaz, Neuer and Musiala are not affecting Bayern’s morale. Former national-team coach Joachim Löw describes Bayern as a side that seeks to dominate through possession and defend high; he considers Dortmund well structured and at a very high physical level.