BVB move back up to third with 2-1 win over TSG

The 81,360 spectators at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK saw Marco Reus open the scoring for the hosts in the fourth minute after latching on to a pass from Gonzalo Castro, but the 27-year-old was standing in an offside position at the moment the ball was played and the goal should not have counted. A penalty ten minutes later presented Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with the perfect chance to double the advantage, but the Gabon forward fired the spot-kick wide of the post. From then on Hoffenheim were largely in the ascendancy, though the men from Kraichgau rarely carved out clear-cut opportunities and would have found themselves 2-0 behind in the 58th minute if custodian Oliver Baumann had not made an excellent save from Reus to keep his team in the game.

There was action at both ends in the final ten minutes, with "Auba" popping up in the right place at the time right time to nod home Guerreiro's shot after it rebounded off the post in the 82nd minute, before Kramaric reduced the deficit after a penalty was awarded for Ginter's foul on Wagner four minutes later. However, BVB defended valiantly and held on to secure the victory that moved them back up to third.

The scenario
Fourth-placed Borussia Dortmund were attempting to wrest back third spot, which guarantees its occupant automatic qualification for the UEFA Champions League, from TSG Hoffenheim, whose coach Julian Nagelsmann had attempted to pile the pressure on the Black and Yellows in the run-up to the match. BVB boss Thomas Tuchel, however, appeared unperturbed, saying: "We've consistently demonstrated we can handle it. The pressure's always there." Nonetheless, the pressure on a club like Borussia Dortmund was always going to be greater than what Hoffenheim were facing. The Black and Yellows went into this one as favourites, having not lost any of their previous eight against TSG and having only tasted defeat once in their last 11 meetings.

Personnel matters
Thomas Tuchel made three changes to the starting XI that drew 0-0 with 1. FC Köln last weekend, bringing in Lukasz Piszczek, Raphael Guerreiro and Ousmane Dembélé to replace Erik Durm (back problems), Shinji Kagawa and Christian Pulisic (both bench). There was only one change to Hoffenheim's team, with Nagelsmann drafting in Uth in place of Amiri. BVB were shorn of the services of Nuri Sahin (torn lateral collateral ligament in ankle), Marc Bartra (arm and hand operation), André Schürrle (ankle) and Mario Götze (metabolic disorder).

Tactics
Both teams sought to maximise possession in a bid to take control of the match. The visitors lined up in a 3-5-2 formation and often had six players in the opposition half when going forward. The Black and Yellows went into the game with an almost identical gameplan, the only difference being that Hoffenheim's attacking midfielders Demirbay and Kramaric drifted out wide towards the flanks, while Castro and Dembélé occupied a more central role. When the hosts had the ball TSG switched to a 5-3-2 system. For BVB, Piszczek and Guerreiro would drop back to expand the back three into a back five when Hoffenheim were on the attack – particularly in the second period. In the first half Piszczek had been deployed in a much more attacking role.

The match & analysis
The match sprang into life with a goal in the fourth minute. Perhaps unintentionally, Castro had tapped the ball into the path of Reus, who went clean through on Baumann and slotted the ball between the legs of the TSG custodian to open the scoring. The hosts could certainly consider themselves fortunate to see the goal given, however: Reus was undoubtedly in an offside position at the moment the ball was played, but referee Felix Brych (Munich) awarded the goal after consulting with his linesmen. It was the 27-year-old's third goal in four Bundesliga games since making his comeback.

Spurred on by their early lead, the Black and Yellows penned the visitors back into their defensive third in an opening quarter of an hour that was characterised by frequent tough tackling. BVB were unrelenting in their pressure and almost doubled their advantage in the 13th minute when the referee awarded a penalty in another moment of controversy: the fact that Reus had used his upper arm to control the ball moments before it struck Kaderabek's hand on its way into the box was not taken into consideration by Dr. Felix Brych. Aubameyang stepped up to take the ensuing spot-kick but lacked the necessary accuracy and fired the ball wide. In all competitions, the Gabon international has now converted just one of the last five penalties that he has taken.

Hoffenheim's grip on the game increased as the match progressed. By the time the half-time whistle sounded, the visitors had recorded 55 percent possession and played significantly more passes than BVB, who were experiencing difficulties with their build-up play but nonetheless won 55 percent of the tackles in the first 45 minutes, and as much as 66 percent in the first 37 minutes. The Black and Yellows lacked the initiative to build on their lead as the first period drew to a close, and instead focused on switch-play.

The match continued in largely the same vein after the interval, with Hoffenheim bossing possession and dictating the play but never really penetrating the Dortmund rearguard or keeping their composure when shooting opportunties came their way. BVB, meanwhile, focused on counter-attacks and set-pieces. Reus almost made it 2-0 in the 58th minute after latching on to a long through-ball from Sokratis, but Baumann made a spectacular save to thwart the attempted volley. Six minutes later a long-range shot from Ginter was deflected over. By this point the game was on a knife edge, with challenges and tackles occurring all over the pitch. Six players were booked in the first hour, including four Black and Yellows – a rare occurrence in Dortmund.

TSG coach Nagelsmann made one last throw of the dice with 20 minutes remaining, bringing on another striker, Szalai, to replace centre-back Hübner with his third and final substitution. Tuchel had not used any of his three changes by that point and it was not until the 79th minute that Rode and Kagawa came on for Reus and Dembelé.

Despite having had more of the play, the visitors were made to pay for their profligacy in front of goal in the closing stages. While Bürki made a comfortable save from Amiri 18 metres out in the 82nd minute, Aubameyang scored at the other end seconds later. Guerreiro met Piszczek's cross with a half-volley that rebounded off the post and into the path of the Gabon forward, who headed home his 28th goal of the season. Almost immediately afterwards referee Brych pointed to the spot at the other end after Ginter was adjudged to have held back Wagner in the penalty area. Kramatic hit the ensuing spot-kick down the middle to reduce the deficit to 2-1 in the 86th minute, but there were to be no further twists in the dying minutes.

Prospects
BVB's next hurdle as they attempt to wrap up automatic UEFA Champions League qualification comes when they travel to Augsburg next Satuday (15:30 CET). A fortnight later, the Black and Yellows will play host to Werder Bremen on the final day of the season.

Teams & goals