Match Report
2-1 – BVB win in the league too!
Boris Rupert reporting from Heidenheim
The 15,000 spectators at the sold-out Voith-Arena initially witnessed a one-sided match played in temperatures just above freezing, in which Borussia deservedly led at half-time through Serhou Guirassy's 09th goal of the season. Beier, who had come on as a substitute shortly beforehand, made it 2-0 in the 63rd minute, but Heidenheim immediately pulled a goal back through Honsak and kept the Black & Yellows on their toes until the final whistle..
The scenario:
It was 16th versus 11th in the table. European participants 1. FC Heidenheim were four points adrift of a non-relegation place, while Champions League finalists Borussia Dortmund were six points away from places four and five. Heidenheim were the worst home team, having picked up seven of their 14 points at their own stadium, while BVB had taken only five of their 26 on the road.
Personnel matters:
The injured Süle and Nmecha were joined on the sidelines by Schlotterbeck, who was suspended for a second match following his red card against Bremen and was replaced by Anton in Heidenheim. In addition, Groß and Duranville replaced Beier and Adeyemi in the starting line-up.
Tactics:
Both teams took to the field in a 4-2-3-1 formation but adopted different approaches. Heidenheim sat deep, mostly only pressed from the halfway line and allowed BVB to have the ball. During build-up play, left-back Bensebaini pushed into central midfield and Groß moved from his holding midfield role over to the flank in order to create numerical superiority on the left or right.
The match & analysis:
Borussia Dortmund recorded 80% possession in the opening stages, but the action predominantly took place within 20 metres of the halfway line. Only on two occasions did they manage to break through. The first time was in the 09th minute, when Gittens got the better of Traoré down the left flank and hit the side-netting with his deflected shot from a tight angle. The second time was in the 27th minute when Guirassy's header at goal from a Gittens cross was too central.
With half an hour on the clock, a set-piece helped in their pursuit of a breakthrough: Anton met Ryerson's corner and juggled the ball twice before threading it through to Guirassy, who picked out the left corner with a low strike from 10 metres (33). Heidenheim only posed a danger on one occasion in the first period, with Kobel making a strong save to deny Krätzig (41). But it would have been disallowed for offside anyway.
Dortmund re-emerged with Adeyemi in place of Duranville. Heidenheim were more resolute after the restart, pressed higher up and brought on three new faces in the 56th minute.. A matter of seconds after this triple substitution, Kobel made a save to deny Conteh. Heidenheim were now throwing themselves into the challenges. The match became much more intense. BVB initially seemed to be on the path to victory. Sabitzer drove the ball forwards and found Gittens. He touched it to Bensebaini who played a low cross towards Beier, who had just come off the bench and slotted into the far corner to make it 2-0 (63). But the two-goal cushion barely lasted 60 seconds, with Honsak slotting home Krätzig's cross to cut the deficit to 2-1 (64).
BVB could only temporarily relieve the pressure, while FCH threw everything forward. Striker Schimmer came on for defender Gimber. In the 90th minute, Anton thwarted a possible equaliser following a cross by Wanner.
Outlook:
VfB Stuttgart will pay a visit to SIGNAL IDUNA PARK next Saturday (15:30 CET).
Teams & goals
Bundesliga Matchday 20
Saturday 1 February 2025, 15:30 CET
1. FC HEIDENHEIM 1-2 (0-1) BORUSSIA DORTMUND
1. FC Heidenheim: Müller – Traoré, Mainka, Gimber (Schimmer, 80), Föhrenbach – Kerber (Beck, 56), Schöppner – Scienza (Conteh, 56), Pieringer (Honsak, 56), Krätzig (Wanner, 73) – Zivzivadze
Bor. Dortmund: Kobel – Ryerson, Can, Anton, Bensebaini – Sabitzer, Groß (Özcan, 71) – Duranville (Adeyemi, 45; Couto, 87), Brandt (Beier, 58), Gittens (Reyna, 87) – Guirassy
Substitutes: Feller, Busch, Keller, Siersleben – Meyer, Campbell, Mané, Kabar
Goals: 0-1 Guirassy (Anton, 33), 0-2 Beier (Bensebaini, 63), 1-2 Honsak (Krätzig, 64)
Corners: 4-5 (0-2 at half-time), chance ratio: 2-3 (1-3)
Referee: Willenborg (Osnabrück), yellow cards: Föhrenbach – Duranville, Reyna, Kobel, Guirassy
Attendance: 15,000 (sold-out), weather: sunny, 2 degrees