Bundesliga
Toljan salvages late point for BVB in 2-2 draw
Jeremy Toljan salvaged a point for Borussia Dortmund with the last kick of their clash with SC Freiburg. A late onslaught by the Black & Yellows finally paid off as the defender netted a volley in the third minute of stoppage time to rescue a 2-2 (1-1) draw for the hosts.
Dennis-Julian Gottschlich reporting
A sell-out crowd of 81,360 at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK saw a first half in which Borussia Dortmund opened the scoring through Kagawa in the ninth minute but subsequently tailed off, allowing Freiburg to level through Petersen 12 minutes later. Little of note happened after the restart until Petersen caught Bürki off-guard with an effort from 40 metres to put the visitors 2-1 up, but BVB piled on the pressure in the closing stages and Toljan finally restored parity in injury time.
Watch all the match videos on BVBtotal!
The scenario:
Sixth-placed Borussia, who were unbeaten under Peter Stöger in the league but still without a win in 2018, hosted in-form Freiburg, who went into this one on a longer unbeaten run than any other club in the Bundesliga (seven matches). BVB had won each of their last nine home games against Freiburg, scoring 27 and conceding just three in the process.
Personnel matters:
Schmelzer, Guerreiro, Reus, Philipp, Durm and Rode were unavailable for the Black & Yellows, while Freiburg were without Frantz, Höfler, Ravet and Niederlechner. Peter Stöger made three changes to the XI that started in Berlin last Friday, bringing in Sahin, Castro and Aubameyang for Weigl, Götze and Schürrle.
Tactics:
Freiburg, who lined up with a back five in a 5-2-3 formation but switched to a 3-4-3 upon regaining possession, were up against a Black & Yellows side operating in a 4-3-3 system. Midfielder Kagawa performed a more offensive role to lend the hosts an extra body in attack, although Koch and Abrashi mostly kept the Japan international on a tight leash.
The match & analysis:
Only nine minutes had elapsed before BVB took the lead against Freiburg. Castro initiated the goal by chipping the ball into the box and, in the goalmouth scramble that ensued, it landed at the feet of Piszczek. The Pole's shot from a centre-right position was blocked and flew across the penalty area towards Kagawa, who acrobatically volleyed home from the edge of the six-yard box to hand the hosts a deserved lead. The first moment of danger had come seven minutes earlier when Pulisic fired in a dangerous cross that was cleared away for a corner by Kübler. Five minutes after the opener, Sancho cut inside from the left flank and sent a curler towards the top corner from 17 metres, only for Freiburg shot-stopper Gikiewicz to claw it away with a fingertip save (14).
Two-goal salvo from Petersen
The men from Baden-Württemberg might have shown little in the way of attacking threat in the opening stages, but they still managed to restore parity against the run of play on 21 minutes. A through-ball down the right played in Haberer, who sent a low cut-back from the byline towards the near post, where Petersen got a touch on it and sent the ball flying into the back of the net from a seemingly impossible angle (21). Unfortunately for the hosts, the equaliser gave Freiburg a foothold in the game and they grew in confidence, allowing BVB less of the ball. Their next clear-cut chance came on the 38-minute mark when Kübler latched on to a cross from Abrashi and struck the ball at goal from eight metres out, but Bürki managed to halt the ball on the line. That chance came shortly after Aubameyang had come close to making it 2-1 six minutes earlier when he rose to meet a Castro cross but headed narrowly over the frame of the goal.
It took the two teams a while to properly find their way into the game after the interval and it wasn't until the 59th minute, when Kagawa struck the side-netting from a narrow angle, that the match came to life. That effort served as a wake-up call for the visitors, who got into some dangerous positions in the Dortmund box on several occasions in the ensuing minutes without ever getting a shot away. But they eventually took the lead in curious fashion when Petersen stole possession just inside the BVB half and, having spotted Bürki a long way off his line, beat the Dortmund shot-stopper with an inch-perfect lob from 40 metres out (68). The Black & Yellows piled on the pressure in the closing stages as they chased the game. A perfect Götze cross picked out Piszczek on the penalty spot but his header was comfortably gathered by the Freiburg custodian (74). But eventually, deep into stoppage time, Yarmolenko sent a cross into the box and when Söyüncü failed to clear properly, Toljan volleyed home from 14 metres out to make it 2-2.
Watch all the match videos on BVBtotal!
Outlook:
The Bundesliga campaign continues on Friday (20:30 CET) when Borussia Dortmund visit 1. FC Köln.