Bayern Munich needed extra-time to pip their rivals Borussia Dortmund to the DFB Cup, and claim the domestic double. Arjen Robben broke the deadlock in the 107th minute, before Thomas Müller sealed the 2-0 win.
Just like in last season's Champions League final, Arjen Robben made the difference - only this time Dortmund were defeated by a bad goal-line decision as much as by the tireless Dutchman.
Bayern Munich showed more attacking intent throughout the first half, and almost opened in the scoring inside ten minutes, when Thomas Müller broke clear, only to blast the ball straight into the face of Roman Weidenfeller, whose eyes watered for a while afterwards.
Arjen Robben, Bayern's perennially dangerous Dutchman, also had a shot on goal early on, but this time Weidenfeller only had to drop to his left to stop his relatively straightforward shot. But those two chances were more than Dortmund showed in the entire first period - Jürgen Klopp's men looked stifled, their attackers regularly chopped down or pulled back by the arm whenever they threatened to break in the traditional BVB fashion.
The game began under the shadow of injury for the German champions, who lost key defender David Alaba the day before during training. Pep Guardiola's personnel headache got worse on the half-hour mark when his captain - and perhaps key player - Philipp Lahm went down with a foot injury. Franck Ribery, himself struggling with a sore back, took his place.
With Bayern re-adjusting their midfield set-up, the game drifted a little for the rest of the half. Only Robert Lewandowski's snap-shot just before the break threatened Manuel Neuer's goal.
Second half controversies
The tempo increased significantly in the second half, and Müller very nearly scored again within minutes of the re-start when he muscled his way onto the end of a Ribery cross and turned the ball in, only to thump Weidenfeller's chest.
But Dortmund had also upped their game, and were rewarded with a string of free-kicks from just outside the Bayern area. One of these appeared to lead to the opening goal, when Neuer missed the Nuri Sahin's perfect delivery, and Mats Hummels nodded it over the line - only for Dante to hack the ball clear. No goal was given, though replays seemed to show the ball a good six inches over the line. Then again, it also seemed to show that the BVB defender's right foot offside by the same margin.
The game had opened up now, and within minutes at the other end, the ball slammed into Hummels' elbow - triggering frantic appeals from the Bayern players. Again the referee waved them away. Dortmund continued to press forward, and Oliver Kirch - who came on in place of a largely anonymous Henrikh Mkhitaryan - almost made the breakthrough with a thundering strike that Neuer did well to punch clear.
Edgy extra-time
Lahm's absence did much to level the teams in quality, and the tight, edgy nature of the game ensured the game went to extra time. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang very nearly broke the deadlock within minutes of the re-start after Toni Kroos lost the ball in his own half, but the Frenchman's shot skittered just wide of Neuer's upright.
As the players succumbed to the inevitable spate of cramp, there seemed nothing to choose between the two teams - only for the game to spring to life in the second period of extra time. From the kick-off, the industrious Robben sent a weak shot straight into Weidenfeller's arms, but the BVB goalkeeper's throw out to Kevin Grosskreutz was equally poor, and was picked up by Jerome Boateng. The German was alert enough to swing the ball straight back across the penalty area, where Robben was still loitering, and his side-footed effort somehow sneaked between Weidenfeller's legs.
Dortmund toiled on, and nearly claimed an equalizer in injury time, but Marco Reus' shot was deflected over. Bayern broke from the resulting corner, and Claudio Pizarro rolled the ball to a weary Müller, who just about fought off Piszczek and staggered past Weidenfeller to sidefoot home.
Joy, relief, and annoyance after game
Bayern's stars expressed relief as well as a certain irritation after the game. "We had to take a lot of criticism in the last few weeks - a lot of it was justified, but sometimes it was exaggerated," Lahm told German TV channel ARD after the game. "We were clearly the better team over 120 minutes."
"The criticism of me after the Real Madrid game was certainly justified," admitted Guardiola. "I made tactical mistakes. I still haven't created the team I would like to have."
"I didn't see what I wanted to see from the players in the first half, but they all gave everything," said Klopp. "There were few games where a goal would've done us more good than that one."
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