Match Report
BVB press, Frankfurt score and win 2-0
Boris Rupert reporting from Frankfurt
The 6,000 Black & Yellows among the 58,000 spectators at Deutsche Bank Park saw a committed display from the team, who struck the upright through Guirassy in the ninth minute but then fell behind due to a goal from Ekitike (8). BVB pressed for an equaliser after the interval but Höjlund scored to make it 2-0 in stoppage time.
The scenario:
BVB trailed their third-placed opponents by eight points. Borussia had taken seven out of a possible nine points from their previous three away games in Frankfurt. Their most recent defeat there came on 26 November 2016 during Thomas Tuchel's tenure as coach.
Personnel matters:
All the players were available with the exception of the injured Niklas Süle. There were two nominal changes compared to the starting line-up for the match in Kiel: Waldemar Anton and Pascal Groß replaced Julien Duranville and Marcel Sabitzer (both substitutes)…
Tactics:
...but the alterations to the way the 11 players lined up on the pitch were more more profound. For the first time under Sahin, BVB started with a three-man defence (Anton, Can, Schlotterbeck), a broad midfield (Ryerson, Nmecha, Groß, Bensebaini) and three attacking players in front of them (Brandt, Gittens, Guirassy). The formation was a 3-4-2-1 on the ball, which sometimes became a 5-4-1 off the ball. The formation was almost identical for Eintracht but the approach was not: the home team had little interest in the ball, allowed Borussia to have it and instead waited for opportunities to counter-attack.
The match & analysis:
The team not only struggled at the outset against an opponent that had made a perfect start to the year – but also with their own nerves, putting themselves in trouble with some careless build-up play following a goal-kick. Kobel played the ball to the feet of Skhiri, who was lurking on the edge of the box. Larsson got a shot away from around 11 metres but Kobel made amends for his mistake by making a block with his feet and denying an early goal in the first minute. Possession was also quickly lost in the passages of play that followed.
But the team then recovered, gained control of the match and created a major opportunity of their own to score in the ninth minute when Guirassy headed Ryerson's cross against the left upright. But it was in this spell, in which BVB looked likelier to score the first goal of the game than Eintracht, that they conceded the opener. After a one-two with Ekitiké, Kristensen had lots of space down the right and cut the ball back to the edge of the six-yard box towards Ekitiké, who came running in and slotted the ball over the line to make it 1-0 (18). Knauff struck the upright four minutes later. It could have already been 2-0.
That was the first half in microcosm: lots of Dortmund possession in Frankfurt's half of the pitch and several corners but hardly any compelling ideas against a compact opponent who switched the play at lightning speed after winning back possession: Knauff cut the ball back following a counter and Ekitiké fired only narrowly wide of the goal (34).
Couto replaced Bensebaini, who did not re-emerge from the changing rooms (Ryerson moved over to the left flank) and immediately injected momentum. He went clean through on Trapp in the 49th minute but the Frankfurt shot-stopper made a save with his foot. BVB then had a spell of pressure. The ball moved more quickly and precisely but Eintracht's back five proved a tough nut to crack.
Guirassy came agonisingly close to Couto's sharp cross and a possible equalising goal for 1-1 (59). Sahin brought on two more attack-minded players with 20 minutes to go: Adeyemi and Beier replaced Brandt and Nmecha. There were subsequently several dangerous moments in the Frankfurt box but no major chances for the Black & Yellows. Guirassy went down in the penalty area in the 84th minute after Theate had grabbed his arm but no penalty was forthcoming.
Dortmund went on the attack but were not rewarded for a very convincing performance, especially in the second half. Frankfurt, meanwhile, made the most of their only chance of the second period: Can lost the ball in the build-up and Höjlund went through on goal to make it 2-0 (90+2).
Outlook:
Borussia Dortmund will be away to Bologna in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday (kick-off at 21:00 CET). It is the penultimate game of the league phase. BVB will then welcome Werder Bremen to SIGNAL IDUNA PARK in the Bundesliga next Saturday (15:30 CET).
Teams & goals
Bundesliga Matchday 18
Friday 17 January 2025, 20:30 CET
EINTRACHT FRANKFURT 2-0 (1-0) BORUSSIA DORTMUND
Eintr. Frankfurt: Trapp – Collins, Koch, Theate – Kristensen (Tuta, 74), Skhiri, Larsson (Höjlund, 74), Brown – Götze (Uzun, 87), Knauff (Bahoya, 87) – Ekitiké (Chaibi, 90+4)
Bor. Dortmund: Kobel – Anton, Can, Schlotterbeck – Ryerson (Reyna, 87), Nmecha (Beier, 71), Groß, Bensebaini (Couto, 46) – Brandt (Adeyemi, 71) – Guirassy, Gittens
Substitutes: Kaua Santos, Chandler, Tuta, Dahoud, Matanovic – Meyer, Duranville, Sabitzer, Campbell, Kabar
Goals: 1-0 Ekitike (Kristensen, 18), 2-0 Höjlund (90+2)
Corners: 5-6 (3-4 at half-time), chance ratio: 5-4 (4-1)
Referee: Schlager (Hügelsheim), yellow cards: – Can, Guirassy, Kehl
Attendance: 58,000 (sold-out), weather: dry, 0 degrees