The so-called “Super-Cup” goes to Borussia Dortmund as they defeated Bayern München 4-2 in a rousing match in Dortmund. This “Cup” is of course worthless, but nevertheless it’s important in that it indicates that the Neons have not conceded everything to the Bavarian giants and they hope to ensure that Pep Guardiola’s side don’t have a walk-in-the-park as last season. Marco Reus scored twice for the home side, so perhaps Bayern will try and buy him to reduce Dortmund’s chances. Of course, as mentioned, this Cup probably means squat, so Bayern is probably not going to lose any sleep over it.

Both sides were close to full strength, although Bayern of course has several full-strength lineups. Neuer was out, so he was ably represented by Tom Starke, who promptly committed a Neuerism by flapping at a ball that lead to Dortmund’s first goal. This match also featured a rare header by Arjen Robben, who already seems to be in top form.

Good performances for Dortmund, who showed that they can compete against Bayern head-to-head, although we already really knew that. What we don’t know is whether they can keep pace with what is certainly to be a relentless Bayern romping through the Bundesliga.

In somewhat better news for Bayern, Bastian Schweinsteiger was named “Footballer of the Year” and Jupp Heynckes was “coach of the Year”.

In other interesting news, over 100,000 Schalke fans showed up at the facilities for the “opener” and an official “goodbye” to fan-favorite Raul. Of course he left Schalke last season for Qatar club Al-Saad, and after playing one season, is retiring. So he returned for one last time – to Schalke rather than Madrid (!). He played one half with Al-Saad and the 2nd half with Schalke. (The match was a bit one-sided, Schalke winning 9-0. Yes nine, no typo). Raul played for Schalke 2010-12 and despite the short stay, is already a legend and one of the most popular players. I think part of it is that he chose Schalke when he left Real Madrid, when he was still close to the peak of his game. (Of course it didn’t hurt that he was Schalke’s best and most inspirational player during his stay as well).