Donyell Malen was the decisive man for Borussia Dortmund in the narrow 3-2 win against TSG Hoffenheim. The BVB attacker was involved in all three goals. The Dutchman now wants to use the free phase for regeneration.
After the end of the 20th match day, the Bundesliga will have a short break. FIFA had already blocked the time window between January 24 and February 1 in its calendars in August 2020 in order to make up for the World Cup qualifiers that had been canceled due to the corona pandemic. All of the confederations except UEFA are on the ball, so the majority of Bundesliga professionals are on a break.
“If time allows, I’ll take it easy,” Donyell told Malen one day after Borussia’s third consecutive win in the second half of the season club media. But the 23-year-old won’t really take it easy: “We also have to work hard. There’s still a lot that we can and must improve. These 14 days are ideal for that.” The next game for BVB is on February 6th when Bayer Leverkusen is a guest.
According to Donyell Malen, the main thing to improve is the defensive work. You have to “defend better as a team,” said the new summer signing: “Yesterday, too, we sometimes lost control. We have to control the games better and be more stable as a result.”
Painting at BVB: “If it works, then it works”
Especially in the last ten minutes of the game, the game threatened to tip over again in favor of Hoffenheim. Ultimately, BVB saved the narrow victory over time. “It was difficult. Everyone worked hard to get the three points,” said the match winner, relieved: “If you win, you’re really happy, so everyone’s happy.”
For the winger, the three assists were Borussia Dortmund’s first in the Bundesliga. He didn’t really change his game compared to the rather mixed start to the season, as he emphasized: “Of course, if you’re new to a club, it can be a little different. But I did the same things as at the beginning and now it worked. If it works, then it works.”