Bundesliga Finally Challenging Bayern

It was one of those days for a Bundesliga powerhouse that rarely has one of those days.

OK, it was second-place Wolfsburg doing the honors, but eyebrows were raised at the way they did it: a 4-1 wipeout.

At the start of each season, it seems like the name FC Bayern München has already been engraved on the Bundesliga trophy. Their domestic season is then spent methodically bullying other teams.

Not this time around, though. Bayern’s smackdown by Wolfsburg shows exactly how determined the field is to dent the Bavarian dynasty.

Last night, the party started early for the underdogs. Like in the fourth minute, with Dutchman Bas Dost doing the honors after an impressive field-length build-up:

Somehow, Europe's giant clubs are finding it hard to defend in the early minutes. Barcelona and Real Madrid have discovered this, thanks to Fernando Torres.

Bayern likes to play it short, with tic-tac-toe ball control. Wolfsburg, though, kept covering ground in bunches, with Bost closing the half the same way he started it. This time, the Bombenschuss was a perfect volley:

That's his version of tic-tac-toe: foot-post-net.

Bayern had conceded only four goals in last 17 matches but they'd coneded half that number already. And the next 45 minutes contained more of the same. First, it was well-timed service that led to a track meet that Kevin de Bruyne won:

Now Bayern has another reason to hate Chelsea, who sold the Belgian to Wolfsburg.

Eventually, the German juggernaut did pull one back. With a bit of persistence, the promising Juan Bernat put them in the books:

Then, it was de Bruyne joining teammate Dost in doing a double, again after a long run and then finishing with a cool head and strong foot:

The gap between these sides is now just five points. By the looks of it, Bayern could have a hectic second half of the season awaiting.