Stage Image Alternative Text

News

Ten-man Dortmund record 2-1 win in Bremen

Borussia Dortmund ran out 2-1 (2-0) winners away to SV Werder Bremen on Matchday 25 of the Bundesliga season and successfully defended fourth spot in the table. The 10 men of Borussia saw the victory over the line in a dramatic game.

Boris Rupert reporting from Bremen

BVB were highly effective in the first half in front of 42,100 spectators at a sold-out Weser-Stadion and converted two of their three chances through Donyell Malen (21) and Jadon Sancho (38) to take a 2-0 lead, but were reduced to 10 men for the entirety of the second period after Marcel Sabitzer was shown the red card (45+1). Justin Njinmah reduced the deficit to 2-1 with 20 minutes to go, but the Black & Yellows showed great commitment to hold onto the victory.

The scenario:   
Eighth versus fourth: Borussia had lost only one of their previous 10 Bundesliga matches against Werder and had picked up all three points in Bremen in each of the past three seasons. The Green & Whites had come out on top in only one of their previous four league matches, while the Black & Yellows came into the game on a seven-match unbeaten streak on the road.

Personnel matters:   
Sébastien Haller was BVB's only absentee, with Gregor Kobel (recovered from injury) and Donyell Malen (back from suspension) back in the team and starting in place of Alexander Meyer and Karim Adeyemi (both substitutes) compared to the away victory in Berlin the previous weekend. Felix Nmecha was back in the squad for the first time since 11 November 2023.

Tactics:   
The Black & Yellows lined up in their usual 4-2-3-1 formation, with Sabizter pulling away from the double pivot and pushing forward significantly in possession. Sancho occupied the left flank and frequently cut into the middle and even ventured far over to the right. That allowed BVB to overload the right of attack on several occasions. Bremen played in a 3-3-2-2 system. SVW lined up with five at the back without possession, allowing BVB to have the ball and also large swathes of the pitch in a 5-3-2 formation. The attacks only started on the halfway line and involved quick counters with long balls forward after winning possession back.

The match & analysis:
Borussia initially could not make much of their possession dominance – 71% after just over a quarter of an hour – against a Werder side that defended compactly and created the first goalscoring opportunity. Ducksch went clean through on Kobel in a centre-right position in the penalty area following a through-ball and then attempted a lob, but Kobel was not caught by surprise (7).

But then BVB started to find solutions and space and got into shooting positions in and around the box several times. And the fourth strike found the mark! Brandt shot from the edge of the area after Süle's through-ball, Zetterer saved and Malen won the battle in close confines on the follow-up, the Dutchman netting a spectacular scissor kick to make it 1-0 (21). On the half-hour mark, Brandt failed to beat the keeper with a first-time shot in the six-yard box following Füllkrug's cross; but it probably would not have counted as the offside flag went up.

It was an interesting and open game that was contested with great intensity by both teams. Njinmah struck the side-netting, but Kobel had the corner in question covered. Overall, Borussia defended alertly and switched the play quickly after winning back possession to catch Bremen out of position. One such instance saw Füllkrug play the ball to Brandt, who in turn fed it to Sancho. The Englishman cut inside from the left, got the better of Malatini and tucked the ball inside the near post (38).

But Werder continued to pose a danger and threatened through a Ducksch free-kick that Kobel turned behind for a corner (44). The game was already into first-half stoppage time when Sabitzer tried to stop a Bremen counter in the home team's half, caught Weiser from behind and was sent off by referee Aytekin with a straight red card.

Both teams made a tactical change at the beginning of the second period. Bremen now attacked much higher up and much more aggressively. BVB brought on Hummels in place of Malen and switched to a 5-3-1 formation with Ryerson and Maatsen out wide and Süle, Hummels and Schlotterbeck forming the central defence. Can defended centrally in front of them and was flanked by Brandt and Sancho in midfield, with Füllkrug leading the line.

Bremen applied pressure. Ducksch went for goal on the volley but fired narrowly wide of the right upright (53). Weiser was more accurate, but Kobel got to the corner in question in time (58). BVB only rarely succeeded in relieving the pressure. Can had a dangerous shot from long-range (55) and Füllkrug was stopped by Jung at the last moment (60).

After 65 minutes, the coaches switched things up once again. Bremen brought on another forward (Kownacki), while BVB brought on Adeyemi and Özcan for Füllkrug and Brandt. Borussia were now in a 5-2-2 with Sancho and Adeyemi up top. But this formation only briefly preserved the two-goal lead. The first time they lacked organisation, Schmid went clean through and had the vision on the left of the box to pick out the run of the unmarked Njinmah, who slotted home for 2-1 (70).

Adeyemi could have re-established the lead two minutes later when he went clean through on Zetterer, but his attempted lob did not come off. The Bremen custodian also made a strong reaction save to keep out a header from Hummels (82). In the sixth minute of stoppage time, Bensebaini struck the side-netting. At the other end, Weiser's shot was blocked and turned behind for a corner (79), while a Ducksch free-kick from 17 metres out was blocked by the Dortmund wall (90+3).

Outlook:   
After two away games in a row, it's now time for a home double-header: against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday (21:00 CET) and Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday (17:30 CET).

Teams & goals

Bundesliga Matchday 25
WERDER BREMEN 1-2 (0-2) BORUSSIA DORTMUND

Werder Bremen: Zetterer – Malatini (Veljkovic, 65), Stark (Alvero, 83), Jung – Weiser, Lynen, Agu (Bittencourt, 79) – Schmid (Woltemade, 84), Stage (Kownacki, 65) – Ducksch, Njinmah
Bor. Dortmund: Kobel – Ryerson, Süle, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen (Bensebaini, 84) – Sabitzer, Can – Malen (Hummels, 46), Brandt (Adeyemi, 65), Sancho (Nmecha, 74) – Füllkrug (Özcan, 65)
Substitutes: Pavlenka – Keita, Hansen, Groß – Meyer, Reus, Moukoko, Bynoe-Gittens
Goals: 0-1 Malen (Brandt, 21), 0-2 Sancho (Brandt, 38), 1-2 Njinmah (Schmid, 70)
Corners: 11-3 (3-2 at half-time), chance ratio: 7-7 (3-3)
Referee: Aytekin (Oberasbach), red card: Sabitzer (professional foul, 45+1), yellow cards: Schmid – Schlotterbeck, Adeyemi
Attendance: 42,100 (sold-out), weather: dry, 6 degrees

More News