Playing Bayern Munich Is ‘Extra Motivation’ For Gladbach And Joe Scally
It is the original Klassiker. On Saturday, Borussia Mönchengladbach will host Bayern Munich at the Borussia Park. While the Bundesliga marketing machine has usurped the original Klassiker by slapping the Klassiker label on Bayern against Dortmund, this is not only the match with the most history in Germany but also has been a competitive fixture over recent years.
In nine out of 11 seasons from 1970 to 1980, the Bundesliga title winner was either Gladbach or Bayern. Gladbach won the league five times and Bayern four times in that stretch. Only Köln (1978) and Hamburg (1979) were able to break through Bayern’s and Gladbach’s dominance in that period
In addition to the Bundesliga titles, both clubs also played a significant role in Europe. Bayern Munich won the European Cup three times (1974-76), and Gladbach won the UEFA Cup twice (1975 and 1979). This was the time when Bayern stars Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller, and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, together with Gladbach’s Günther Netzer, Berti Vogts, and Jupp Heynckes, dominated German football.
That’s all in the past, though. While Bayern remains one of the most dominant clubs in German football, Gladbach has somewhat fallen behind. Some of that is due to the economic situation in which the two clubs find themselves. While Munich is Germany’s most prosperous city, Mönchengladbach is a relatively small city near the regional powerhouses Cologne and Düsseldorf.
With the glory days long gone, Gladbach can only hope to compete for European places. Indeed, many of the current players aren’t even aware of the club’s past exploits.
“I am not so familiar with the history of it,” Joe Scally said when asked about the background of the Klassiker as part of a media roundtable. “I just know both historic clubs, old clubs, who have won many trophies in the past, and Bayern, of course, still in the present.”
That doesn’t mean Scally isn’t aware of the scope of the fixture awaiting him on Saturday. “You always get up for these kinds of games,” the 19-times US men’s national team player said. “You always want to showcase yourself, prove that you can play with the best players in the world. So far, it always has played into our favor. We have always turned up for the games.”
Without a doubt that is the case. Where Borussia Dortmund appears to melt away like hot butter in the sun whenever they face Bayern, Gladbach turns up the heat themselves. While Bayern has an overall positive record against the Foals
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