Up 2-0 in the 85th minute, everything seemed to be going according to plan for Niko Kovač’s side…until it wasn’t.
After a lackluster first half, it took until the 80th minute for Daniel Svensson to break the deadlock. Serhou Guirassy crossed the ball into the center of the box to Fabio Silva, who’s whiffed shot/pass fell to the Swedish wingback putting Dortmund in front. Five minutes later, Nico Schlotterbeck doubled the lead, scoring his first goal of the Bundesliga season with a towering header
off of a corner from Joey Veerman.
Then Werder Bremen’s Ludovit Reis made the most of his chance, after his side won back possession in Dortmund’s half. His low line-driving shot from outside the box hit the inside of the post, beating Gregor Kobel, for the visitors first goal. Bremen kept pushing with more intent until the equalizer in the 92nd minute. After a foul from Veerman well outside the box, Marco Grüll from a free-kick served up a tantalizing ball on a platter for the former Dortmund player Niclas Füllkrug, whose powerful header left Kobel rooted to the spot. That gave Grüll six assists and Füllkrug five goals – both top of the Bundesliga campaign so far.
As Carsten Cramer, Lars Ricken, and Matthias Sammer looked on in attendance, they could only wonder – like the rest of us – why Bremen looked more likely of the two sides to snatch a winner. The match finished 2-2 with Dortmund’s perfect win streak to start the Bundesliga snapped at four games, but more importantly a squandered chance to widen their gap at the top of the table.
Here are the highlights, en Español:
My Thoughts
- With watching on NBC Universo, it’s fair to say I didn’t understand most of what was said. I also didn’t understand what happened to Dortmund the last 10 minutes of the match. They seemed like a shell of themselves after conceding the first goal. They couldn’t keep possession. Part of that was Bremen’s pressing, but it was also sloppiness, such as bad passes and not being able to hold on to the ball. Both of the visitors goals were absolute quality. They made the most of their chances. But given the sold out crowd of 81,365 strong, you just figured there would be more of a resolve and edge from the home side to see the game out properly.
- Kovač has to figure out the answer to these slow starts. Yes, this is the first game back from international break, but of the 11 goals Dortmund have scored in the league so far, only three of them have come in the first half. They enjoyed 72% of the possession in the opening half but only had five shots to show for it, with an expected goal (xG) ratio of only 0.51, according to FotMob. Aside from a kick save from Bremen’s Karl Hein on Maximilian Beier in the 42nd minute, the threat was minimal from the yellow and black. The visitors 5-4-1 formation in their own half made it difficult to break down. Given that it won’t be the last time you see a defensive formation from a team coming into the Westfalenstadion, tactical tweaks and other adjustments need to be considered by Kovač for these types of games.
- The disallowed goal was soft. Off a corner in the 62nd minute, Ethan Nwaneri tried to do his best Felix Nmecha impression with an outrageous goal via an overhead kick from a Svensson corner. But referee Christian Dingert called Waldemar Anton for a foul leading up to the goal. Anton’s arms appear to slightly extend pushing on Füllkrug’s back. Füllkrug is 6 ft 2 in. Maybe he’s an actor? Either way, he sold it and the referee bought it.
Your Thoughts
What did you think of the match? Let me know your thoughts!
