Bayern Munich wins German Supercup
The Bayern Munich, led this season by Italian Carlo Ancelotti, won today the German Supercup by defeating Borussia Dortmund 0-2 in a match that had two clearly distinct phases, separated by Bayern's first goal, scored by Chilean Arturo Vidal in the 58th minute.
Until that moment, Dortmund had control of the match, with suffocating pressure in the midfield that threatened to disarticulate Bayern's play and with a quite coherent possession game that resulted in continuous arrivals during the first twenty minutes.
The best opportunity in that phase fell to Gabonese Pierre Emerick Aubameyang, who received an excellent pass from Marc Bartra inside the box, but Javi Martínez managed to intervene at the last moment on his shot.
Meanwhile, Bayern was struggling to find their rhythm and only managed to send a cross into the box, which found no receiver, in the 21st minute.
Dortmund continued to threaten and Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer had to intervene twice with two good saves, once against Ousmane Dembelé in the 32nd minute, and again three minutes later against Colombian Adrián Ramos.
However, Bayern had started to shake off the opponent's dominance and in the 37th minute, Arturo Vidal had a shot from outside the box that went off target.
A minute later, Bayern had their first clear chance with a header from Vidal, but Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Burki made a great reaction save.
The second half also began with two Dortmund arrivals, with a shot from Feliz Passlack in the 50th minute that forced Neuer into a great save, and a shot from Dembele in the 56th minute that went slightly wide.
However, just two minutes later, Vidal scored a goal in a counterattack. A long pass from Franck Ribery reached Lewandowski, who crossed from the left for Vidal to unleash a strong shot. Burki managed to partially stop it, but Vidal collected the rebound and scored from close range.
The goal changed the match. Dortmund lost momentum, which may have been due in part to the physical exertion from the first half, and Bayern took control.
The second goal, scored by Thomas Müller, came in the 70th minute after a corner kick. Mats Hummels, playing his first official match with Bayern, headed the ball to set up Müller to finish from close range.
This is the first success for Carlo Ancelotti with Bayern, making it clear that his path is not the same as that of Pep Guardiola. The obsession with possession is now in the past, and it is once again possible to celebrate a minimalist victory.