Borussia Dortmund drop two points against Werder Bremen

Manuel Veth –

Dortmund v Bremen – September 28, 2019 – SIGNAL IDUNA Park, Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund started the game like every game. The Black and Yellows had all the possession but then easily gave the ball away in the 7th minute, allowing Milot Rashica to score on a breakaway. Dortmund, however, and just four minutes later Mario Götze found the equalizer thanks to a beautiful cross by Lukasz Piszczek.

Back at square one Dortmund continued to control the game but were stuck in detail, looking for that extra pass rather than the play that would unlock Werder. Finally, in the 41st minute, Marco Reus found the key to unlock Bremen’s defensive door. A low cross from the right found Dortmund’s number 11 unmarked in the box and Reus scored with a beautiful header that beat Jiri Pavlenka at the far post. Mahmoud Dahoud could have sealed it just before halftime when he went one-v-one with Pavlenka, who managed to deflect the shot over the bar.

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A goal down Werder Bremen started as the more proactive team into the second half and in the 55th minute found the equalizer. Unmarked inside the box after a corner Marco Friedl beat Roman Bürki with a short-range header. Once again Dortmund were back at square one, forcing them into their high possession game against a sturdy Werder backline.

It took until the 70th minute for Dortmund to produce their next big chance. Achraf Hakimi cut in from the right, forcing Pavlenka into a low diving save, Jadon Sancho jumped on the rebound but missed the target. Then in the 75th minute, Paco Alcacer, who had just come on for Götze, missed a tap-in opportunity. Dortmund were now pressing further up the pitch, especially after Julian Brandt had come on for Dahoud. The changes, however, failed to bring the necessary impetus as Dortmund dropped another two points in the title race.

Dortmund v Bremen – Three Stars

Dortmund v Bremen -Marco Reus of Borussia Dortmund celebrates scoring his teams second goal of the game during the Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and SV Werder Bremen at Signal Iduna Park on September 28, 2019 in Dortmund, Germany. (Photo by Lars Baron/Bongarts/Getty Images)

Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund)

Marco Reus not only scored with a beautiful header but was also one of the hardest-working players in Black and Yellow tonight. At times, however, he almost seemed frustrated with the fact that he runs into the open space were not met with more support by his teammates.

Marco Friedl (Werder Bremen)

Left-midfielder Marco Friedl was one of the hardest-working players on the pitch on Saturday. Working feverishly he completely took out Thorgan Hazard of the game. Furthermore, his header in the 55th brought Bremen level for a second time.

Lukasz Piszczek (Borussia Dortmund)

With Hazard almost invincible throughout the 90 minutes, much of the attacking game on the right came from the Polish right-back. Piszczek produced the cross that led to Götze’s goal and was an active part of the attack throughout the 90 minutes.

Dortmund v Bremen GOALS: 0-1 (Rashica 7′) 1-1 (Götze, 11’) 2-1 (Reus, 41’), 2-2 (Friedl, 55′)

Another two points dropped by Borussia Dortmund will be a major disappointment, especially given that it was once again from a leading position. Dortmund are now only seventh with 11 points from six games, three points behind leaders Bayern.

Dortmund v Bremen  – Lineups

Borussia Dortmund:

Formation: 4-2-3-1

Bürki – Piszczek, Akanji, Weigl, Hakimi – Witsel, Dahoud (Brandt, 66′) – Sancho (Guerreiro, 80′), Reus, Hazard – Götze (Paco Alcacer, 72′)

Head Coach: Lucien Favre

Werder Bremen:

Formation: 3-3-2-2

Pavlenka – Gebre Selassie, Sahin (J. Eggestein, 82′), Groß – Lang, M. Eggestein, Friedl – Bittencourt, Klaassen – Sargent (Pizarro, 88′), Rashica (Goller, 72′)

Head Coach: Florian Kohfeldt

Manuel Veth is the owner and Editor in Chief of the Futbolgrad Network. He also works as a freelance journalist and among others contributes to Forbes.com and Pro Soccer USA. He holds a Doctorate of Philosophy in History from King’s College London, and his thesis is titled: “Selling the People’s Game: Football’s transition from Communism to Capitalism in the Soviet Union and its Successor States,” which is available HERE. Manuel has lived in Amsterdam, Kyiv, Moscow, Tbilisi, London, and currently splits his time between Victoria, BC and Munich, Germany.  Follow Manuel on Twitter @ManuelVeth.