Borussia Dortmund beat RB Leipzig 2-1 in the top game of the Bundesliga. After a good first half, BVB defended their narrow lead in the second round. In the table, Dortmund take the lead ahead of FC Bayern Munich.
Marco Reus put BVB in the lead from the point (21st), Emre Can followed up shortly before the break (39th). Towards the end, Leipzig got even stronger. Emil Forsberg scored the connection for the guests (74th).
Edin Terzic had to do without Gregor Kobel for a short time, who had to pass a few minutes before kick-off due to muscular problems. For him, Alexander Meyer stood between the posts. Here is the message.
Borussia Dortmund – RB Leipzig: The analysis
The game started as fast-paced and intense as both sides had expected. Borussia Dortmund initially concentrated on the offensive switching moments after winning the ball. In the 4-3-3, Leipzig’s build-up play was put under a lot of pressure and in this way they won one or the other ball. In the 10th minute, Reus missed a cross that could have led to the lead by just a few centimetres. However, Leipzig also came twice dangerously in front of the Dortmund goal when they brought Nkunku behind the BVB chain. The Frenchman narrowly missed out on Schlotterbeck and Can.
Dortmund then brought a little more control into the game and was almost rewarded: a long ball reached Brandt, who put it in ice cold. However, the leather jumped on his upper arm, which is why the video assistant conceded the 1-0 (14th). As a result, Leipzig made significantly more mistakes in their own ball possession and this created spaces for BVB, which he used ice-coldly. In the 20th minute, Reus was through on the right, but was put down by Blaswich. The captain then converted the penalty himself into a deserved lead. The game calmed down, but Dortmund kept control – and even made it 2-0 just before the break. Emre Can shot free from a free kick. Blaswich didn’t look good again (39′).
The gameplay changed a bit in the second half. Dortmund now mainly defended in deeper areas, Leipzig had to run up. But the Saxons hardly got through. Nevertheless, BVB became too passive – and Leipzig became more and more powerful towards the end of the game. A diagonal ball from the guests found space in the 74th minute, which was excellent for Forsberg. The Swede only had to hold out his foot for the goal. Schlotterbeck had previously canceled the offside.
Leipzig started again, but without becoming really mandatory. Terzic, meanwhile, switched to a five-man chain and finally concentrated on defending. In the end, the guests threw everything forward. A shot by Werner was deflected just before the line by Schlotterbeck. Then it was over. BVB got the three points with a lot of passion and a bit of stupidity.
Borussia Dortmund – RB Leipzig: The data for the game
Gates: 1: 0 Marco Reus (penalty, 21st), 2: 0 Emre Can (39th), 2: 1 Forsberg (74th)
Yellow cards: Christopher Nkunku (15th), Amadou Haidara (17th), Salih Özcan (29th), Marcel Halstenberg (38th), André Silva (45th + 3rd), Benjamin Henrichs (52nd), Julian Brandt (55th)
Borussia Dortmund – RB Leipzig: The voices of the game
Edin Terzic (Borussia Dortmund coach): “We played really well in the first half – and defended passionately in the second. It wasn’t easy to score against us today. We’re very happy with the performance, it was an absolutely top game. At this level It’s not just performance and form that decides, but also the willingness to support each other.”
Marco Rose (RB Leipzig coach): “The result is difficult to accept, the second half was more than clear to us. Dortmund was very efficient. With this performance in Dortmund it’s hard to accept that we lose a game like this for ninety minutes. I have to blame the lads for that with the goals conceded exactly what we mentioned before happened.”
The star of the game: Marco Reus
The captain has returned with a strong performance. His opening goal from the penalty spot was preceded by a deep run into the penalty area. Reus was also otherwise very busy, always playable and thus caused big problems for the people of Leipzig. In his 374th game for BVB, he also scored his 159th goal. He drew level with Michael Zorc. Both are now in second place in the Dortmund top scorer list.
The flop of the game: Janis Blaswich
Did not have a good performance and owed both goals. In the first he was the culprit of the penalty for rushing out of his goal too hastily, in the second he at least looked unhappy because of the deflected shot. On a good day he would have saved the ball.
The referee: Sven Jablonski
In a fast-paced game, Jablonski had to evaluate a few duels early on. For example, two tight situations in the BVB penalty area against Nkunku in the early stages. Both times he rightly decided not to award a penalty. He was just as correct in the penalty decision for BVB as he was in his many yellow cards.
