Borussia Dortmund’s start to 2024 has been a success. But there was no euphoria at BVB after the unadorned 3-0 (0-0) at SV Darmstadt 98. National player Julian Brandt found clear words.
“It wasn’t perfect today either, especially when the opponent has possession of the ball and we want to win the ball and then keep it. The ball was gone very quickly today in the first 15 minutes, we got it relatively quickly “So we gave Darmstadt a lot of possession and didn’t have much control in the game,” explained the 27-year-old on the “Sky” microphone after the game.
He then gave BVB the lead “a little bit out of nowhere,” said Brandt, referring to his goal to make it 1-0 in the 24th minute. “As the second half progressed, I had the feeling that Darmstadt were a bit exhausted and we had our chances.”
Nevertheless, the bottom line was that BVB’s performance was “not a feast for the eyes,” emphasized Brandt self-critically. He explained: “It wasn’t a game that I will remember in ten years, not even my personal performance.”
The experienced professional saw a “very disjointed and chaotic game”, but with a “nice result” from BVB’s point of view.
“Typical cup game” for BVB
Ex-captain Marco Reus, who contributed the goal to make it 2-0 (24th), made similar comments.
“It was the expected difficult game. Away game, really cold, difficult opponent – it was a typical cup game. That’s what it looked like. We had difficulties getting in. Darmstadt made it difficult for us and it took us a long time to play “Then the 1-0 win is a can opener that makes it easier for you, even if it was simply a work victory,” said the 34-year-old.
“Not everything we planned to do worked, but a lot of things worked,” said coach Edin Terzic. “It was a deserved win, we scored three goals and allowed our opponents few chances. It wasn’t an easy game, it wasn’t easy to get into the game. We had some great actions and took a good step today and still know that there is still a lot of work waiting for us.”