Borussia Dortmund welcomed rival Bayern Munich to the Westfalenstadion in the Der Klassiker knowing a win would see Peter Bosz's side vault the Bavarians for top spot in the Bundesliga.

So much for that, after Arjen Robben's crafty 16th-minute finish set the table for a 3-1 victory that sees Bayern maintain a three-point gap on second-place RB Leipzig. The win forges a six-point advantage on a Dortmund side mired by a drab run of form.

Robert Lewandowski made it 2-0 eight minutes before the interval, courtesy of a dazzling backheel, before David Alaba made it three to the good in the 67th minute.

Dortmund did get on the scoreboard two minutes before time when tricky American winger Christian Pulisic nutmegged Robben in the corner and played a give-and-go with Shinji Kagawa, leading to a deft curling effort from centre-half Marc Bartra.

Tough run of form for Dortmund of late after starting the domestic campaign on a stellar stretch of six wins in seven whilst outscoring opponents 21-2. Dortmund has now won just one of its last seven in all competitions, with a 5-0 domestic cup drubbing over third-tier FC Magdeburg the only positive for Bosz's lot.

A case of opposites for Bayern, who is unbeaten under manager returnee Jupp Heynckes, including a pair of wins over Leipzig in a three-day span.