“It was my mistake”
BVB star takes responsibility after CL debacle
02/25/2026 – 9:58 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
The Champions League adventure ends for Borussia Dortmund in the second round. In the aftermath there is mainly self-criticism.
Borussia Dortmund traveled to Atalanta Bergamo with the clear goal of reaching the round of 16 of the Champions League. This venture failed in a dramatic way on Wednesday evening: BVB squandered their 2-0 lead from the first leg and were eliminated from the premier class with a 1-4 defeat in the second leg.
The all-important goal came from a penalty deep into stoppage time. Ramy Bensebaini hit opponent Nikola Krstović in the head with his heel during a clearance. Referee José Maria Sanchez Martinez initially decided on a corner, but changed his mind after VAR intervened. The fact that Bergamo was able to get into Dortmund’s penalty area again was due to a failed pass from Gregor Kobel.
“It was my mistake in the end, I’m sorry for the boys,” the goalkeeper took responsibility at the DAZN microphone. “I was in the game, looking for a solution. I just have to sort it out somehow,” he explained his point of view. Instead of hitting the ball away, the Swiss tried a short pass. This ended up with a Bergamo professional and resulted in a penalty. “It’s hard for the team and it hurts,” added Kobel.
Despite this mistake, the goalkeeper received support from captain Emre Can. “Gregor has saved us many times this season,” said the national player, referring to a save by Kobel in the first half: “It’s crazy how he pulls it out. No blame to him.”
In any case, Dortmund’s captain didn’t want to pillory any of his teammates. “No blame on any player, but with so many individual mistakes it will be difficult,” he said, referring to all four goals conceded as “crappy goals”.
Niko Kovač also chose clear words. “We didn’t play a good game,” said the coach. “We deserved to be eliminated from the game today. We didn’t put in the performance that would have been necessary to advance.” The BVB coach emphasized that “we don’t have to talk about the penalty. We made the mistakes and that will be punished in the Champions League.”
