Bayern Munich suffered their heaviest ever German Cup defeat as they were hammered 5-0 by Borussia Mönchengladbach, going out of the competition in the second round for the second season in a row.

Gladbach striker Breel Embolo was unplayable, dominating Bayern centerbacks Dayot Upamecano and Lucas Hernandez to assist two goals in the first half and score two more himself in the second, as Bayern lost for only the second time this season.

“Auf Wiedersehen! You can go home now!” sang the jubilant home fans in the direction their Bayern counterparts, 5-0 up and still with half an hour to play.

And Bayern head coach Julian Nagelsmann, watching from home for the third game in a row as he recovers from a COVID-19 infectionin isolation, could have been forgiven for turning off his television there and then.

It was the first time Bayern had conceded five goals in this competition since the 5-2 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the 2012 final. Before that, there was a 5-1 defeat to Cologne in a 1972 quarterfinal replay. And it continued the Bavarians’ poor run of form at Borussia Park: they have now failed to win on their any of their last five visits to this part of the Rhineland.

“You dream of nights like this from time to time but you never really think it could be reality,” said Gladbach sporting director Max Eberl at full-time. “Tonight will go down in the club’s history.”

Bayern’s ‘collective blackout’

Eberl’s Bayern counterpart, Hasan Salihamidzic, spoke of a “collective blackout,” telling broadcaster ARD: “We’re shocked, we just didn’t turn up. I don’t think we won a single tackle in the first half, and every ball just bounced away from us. I can’t explain it. We know it’s hard to come here, we know how well Gladbach press, but everything went wrong tonight which could go wrong.”

Given the two teams’ recent form, there was little to suggest that such an upset was on the cards, let alone one of such historic proportions. Since losing to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga earlier this month, Bayern had seemed entirely unaffected by Nagelsmann’s absence in quarantine, brushing aside Bayer Leverkusen, Benfica and Hoffenheim with assistant coach Dino Toppmöller on the sideline.

Gladbach, on the other hand, came into the game on the back of poor performances against Hertha Berlin and Stuttgart but, just like in the Bundesliga meeting the two teams back in August, the Foals came flying out of the blocks, creating a string of early chances. And this time, they took them mercilessly.

Kouadio Kone gave them the lead after just two minutes before Ramy Bensebaini added a second, and then a third from the penalty spot. Three goals in 21 minutes, and it could well have been more.

“The first 30 minutes were a frenzy,” said Eberl. “We completely outplayed Bayern and showed that they, too, are only human.”

The Breel Embolo show

Then came the Embolo show. The Swiss hitman had already set-up Kone’s opener and won Bensebaini’s penalty, but he took center-stage after half-time, bullying and beating Upamecano and Hernandez with his movement, physicality and precise finishing to make it four and then five.

“We haven’t rewarded ourselves in recent games and we wanted to show what we can do,” the 24-year-old told ARD. “We haven’t been clinical enough but now we can see, when we stay cool, we can beat anyone, even perhaps the best team in the world.”

With Bayern once again out of the competition, the German Cup now looks wide open for the second year in a row. Last season, Borussia Dortmund capitalized on the Bavarians’ absence to win their first silverware since 2017.

Borussia Mönchengladbach have been waiting since 1995 but, on this form, they will feel they can beat anyone.