Thomas Tuchel’s unexpected appointment as Bayern Munich coach has added even more spice to “der Klassiker.”

Tuchel, who took over after Bayern fired Julian Nagelsmann last Friday, will face former club Borussia Dortmund this Saturday in his first match back in Germany.

Dortmund fired Tuchel three days after the team won the 2017 German Cup because he had fallen out with club officials and players over his two seasons in charge. There were disagreements with chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke, sports director Michael Zorc, chief scout Sven Mislintat and others.

Bayern is gambling on Tuchel shaking up the team for the decisive part of the season after a 2-1 loss at Bayer Leverkusen dropped the 10-time defending champions one point behind Dortmund going into Saturday’s match in Munich.

Dortmund’s visit is looming as arguably the biggest game of the season — a potential title decider with eight games remaining afterward. Only a win will ease fears of decline at Bayern and wrest the league outcome from Dortmund’s control.

Source: Oman News Agency