In the style of a champion, Borussia Dortmund sent VfL Wolfsburg home. BVB punished almost every one of the many VfL mistakes coldly.
With the furious 6-0 (3-0) win against Wolfsburg on Sunday (May 7th, 2023), Dortmund is keeping leaders Bayern Munich on their heels, three games before the end of the season the gap is still one point. With a disciplined defensive performance and notable goals from Karim Adeyemi (14′, 59′), Jude Bellingham (59′, 86′), Sebastien Haller (28′) and Donyell Malen (37′), BVB clinched an impressive home win.
Dortmund coach Edin Terzic was full of praise for his team: “It was an absolute top performance today, from start to finish. Of course it always helps when you take the lead early on, but it’s much more important that you keep your foot on the accelerator. We did.”
Looking ahead to the championship, he added: “The season is very crazy, it’s very intense, we’ve had so many setbacks. Maybe this season isn’t just about taking the chances, it’s also about showing that no matter what happens, no matter how hard we’re tested, we’re ready to stand up and keep believing.“
Nice header from Adeyemi
Wolfsburg failed to take advantage of the defeats of the competition in the fight for the European Cup places. “BVB is the best home team. Anyone who plays here knows there is little to gain here“said Wolfsburg coach Niko Kovac, but also criticized his team. “We just didn’t fight back, we weren’t aggressive in the duels, so we deservedly lost at altitude.”
FC Bayern’s 2-1 win at Werder Bremen on Saturday evening had increased the pressure on Dortmund, but any uncertainties were over after just 14 minutes. Adeyemi sunk a deflected cross from Julian Ryerson with a challenging header into the left corner, Josuha Guilavogui was no longer able to interfere.
Wolfsburg gifts Dortmund
It was the start of a fast-paced game: Wolfsburg’s Kevin Wimmer (19′) and Dortmund’s Malen (20′) both missed huge chances in front of the goalkeepers before Haller made it 2-0. This was preceded by Mats Hummels winning the ball against Jonas Wind and a cross pass from Adeyemi, Haller only had to put his foot down.
With the third goal, Wolfsburg made it very easy for BVB, exemplary for the entire game. Because Maximilian Arnold didn’t protect and Guilavogui made a wrong step, a long ball from Wolf was enough to let Brandt run freely towards goal. After a simple cross pass, Malen was allowed to slide into the empty goal.
Curious strike from Bellingham
Wolfsburg made a mistake, Dortmund scored – this was the pattern that continued after the break. Before the 4-0, Bellingham ran diagonally through the opposing half, easily keeping Arnold at a distance. When the VfL captain slipped away, Bellingham shot from 20 meters with his left. Casteels’ parade wasn’t stable enough, the ball bounced off the crossbar, but landed strangely in the goal with a lot of spin.
In a strong Dortmund team, Adeyemi and Bellingham still stood out. Before the 5-0, Adeyemi captured the ball deep in the Wolfsburg half against the sleepy Sebastiaan Bornauw, got it back and tunneled Micky van den Ven. He missed another goal because he shot a penalty kick well over the goal (65th). Kilian Fischer had previously tackled Bellingham.
Bellingham then scored the final point after a header from Brandt and, as usual, a weak Wolfsburg defense – Bornauw was alone on the 16 against two Dortmunders.
Dortmund at home against Gladbach
On Matchday 32, Dortmund will host Borussia Mönchengladbach for the top game (Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 6:30 p.m.), FC Bayern will play against FC Schalke 04 three hours earlier. Wolfsburg will host TSG 1899 Hoffenheim at the same time as FCB.