Hoffenheim’s negative streak ends
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Seventh game, first defeat: Borussia Dortmund’s upward trend in the Bundesliga since the end of the winter break has come to a crashing end. In the 2:3 (2:1) draw against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, coach Edin Terzic’s team suffered a bitter setback in the fight for the Champions League places. The goals conceded by Ihlas Bebou (2nd minute) and Maximilian Beier (61st/65th) in front of 81,365 spectators in the sold-out Signal Iduna Park deprived the fourth-placed side of the table on Sunday of the chance to increase the lead over their pursuers from Leipzig, who lost in Munich, to four points expand.
As in the last two games in Wolfsburg (1:1) and Eindhoven (1:1), the runner-up had a lot to be desired despite a temporary lead from Donyell Malen (21st) and Nico Schlotterbeck (25th). The guests, on the other hand, celebrated their first success after eight competitive games without a win and improved to seventh place.
A blackout by Emre Can, who was replacing Mats Hummels in the back four because of a short-term illness, ushered in disaster for BVB. Can, who had been out of form for weeks, made a major bad pass to Nico Schlotterbeck, which Bebou took advantage of with a powerful shot from the right wing position to give Hoffenheim a 1-0 lead.
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But the early deficit acted as a wake-up call for Dortmund, who had recently been rather sedate. They quickly tried to minimize the damage. Marcel Sabitzer threatened the peat twice when he tested TSG goalkeeper Oliver Baumann with a direct shot (7th) and a free kick (9th).
BVB’s pressure on the guests’ goal increased continuously. With a brilliant save after a low shot from Malen (20th), goalkeeper Baumann was able to prevent the equalizer. However, just a minute later he was also powerless when the Dutchman sent Marco Reus’s header from close range into the net following a corner.
The fact that Borussia managed to remedy Can’s mistake in the second minute before the break was not only due to the powerful game, but also to the efficiency of set pieces. After a free kick from Reus, central defender Schlotterbeck was there with a header. Nevertheless, the guests remained dangerous on the counterattack. When Bebou passed the ball, Tohumcu (27′) had the chance to equalize, but didn’t hit the ball properly. In the final phase of the first half, TSG was able to relieve some of the pressure, but was unable to provide any decisive impetus forward.
After the restart, BVB initially took things a little more slowly – and made another mistake in defense when Ryerson served Hoffenheim’s Maximilian Beier in front of their own penalty area. But the midfielder missed the gift and shot over the goal from 16 meters.
Nevertheless, Beier took on the role of the leading actor a little later. He completed a counterattack with a shot from the edge of the penalty area, which Schlotterbeck deflected unstoppable for BVB keeper Alexander Meyer. Just three minutes later, Beier finally spoiled Borussia’s mood and pushed Anton Stach’s pass over the line from close range. In the 82nd minute, Florian Grillitsch clearly blocked a shot from Sabitzer in the penalty area with his hand, but neither referee Marco Fritz nor the video referee rated this as a criminal offense despite numerous BVB protests. In the end, a great chance for Can in stoppage time was not enough for Dortmund.
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