Champions League and Borussia Dortmund – this always promises tension, drama and entertainment. Wednesday’s game was no exception. Again it was not for the faint-hearted, and again BVB showed their knockout pedigree in the closing minutes. The Black n Yellows have reached the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League after a 2-1 win at Marseille – coming out top of Group F, the “group of death”.

Things could have easily turned out differently for Jürgen Klopp’s men in France. Progress to the last 16 in Europe’s elite club completion was not only in danger, it was in imminent danger. Fifteen minutes before the final whistle, Higuain put Napoli in front against Arsenal in the other group game. At that time, BVB were out of the Champions League, and would have had to carry on playing in the Europa League after Christmas.

image
Sarr and Grosskreutz celebrate the win over Marseille. [picture: firo]

Before the goal in Napoli, BVB had already wasted a number of chances to put the game against Marseille to bed: Kuba having a header cleared off the line and Reus hitting the post (both 57th min.), Lewandowski hitting the side netting (67’) or Hofmann missing a tap-in from six yards – Borussia did not only create half-chances, they created and wasted clear-cut opportunities. “We got chances for two or three games,” said sporting director Michael Zorc.

The old football cliché, saying that when you don’t take your chances you get punished, seemed to come true once again. Wildly gesticulating from the touchline, substituted BVB skipper Sebastian Kehl showed his team-mates the result from Italy with his hands, while Roman Weidenfeller clasped the hands in front of his face in frustration. Everything seemed to go against BVB.

Then, on 87 minutes, when the tension was soaring to an almost unbearable level, it came - the moment every BVB fan had been waiting for. The main protagonist? Kevin Grosskreutz. Mkhitaryan wriggled his way skillfully into the box before passing the ball to Schieber who then “put the ball on a plate for me,” as Grosskreutz explained after the game.

It looked almost like in slow motion when Dortmund’s No. 19 released his shot from the edge of the area. He slipped in the process, but hit the ball in such a way that it flew past four French defenders into the left bottom corner of the net. Jürgen Klopp later called Grosskreuzt’s attempt a “spawny goal” – by hey, that goal sent Borussia Dortmund into the knockout stages of the Champions League.

It was Grosskreutz’s first shot on goal in this game, and one of his most important ones in his career. His second Champions League goal secured victory for BVB who emerged as group winners from the group stages for the second year in a row. This time it was a real photo finish, with three teams – Napoli, Arsenal and Dortmund – finishing on equal points in what was the closest and probably most difficult group in this year’s campaign. For the first time ever, a team (Napoli) crashed out of the Champions League winning 12 points from six games.

“Each of the three teams on 12 points would have deserved to go through to the last 16,” said Sebastian Kehl after the game – which makes it even sweeter for the Black n Yellows to finish on top of this group. Because now they will be paired with an allegedly weaker side – a group runners-up – in the next round. And what’s even more important: they will have home advantage in the second leg. And that promises tension, drama and entertainment.