BVB have to settle for 3-3 draw after dynamic final period | OneFootball

81,365 spectators in the sold-out and sunny, but bitterly cold SIGNAL IDUNA PARK saw a Borussia Dortmund side that took a good 20 minutes to find the right rhythm. Goals from Emre Can (34, penalty) and Maximilian Beier (41) gave Borussia a 2-0 lead at halftime, and with a 12-3 advantage in shots on goal. But Dortmund then let the game slip away. Deniz Undav narrowed the gap in the 47th minute and equalised 20 minutes before the final whistle. Karim Adeyemi then put Dortmund ahead 3-2 in the 89th minute, but Undav completed his hat-trick in stoppage time to secure a 3-3 draw.

Scenario:   Third place versus fourth. Only four goals separated the two teams, who were level on points in the table before the match. Borussia Dortmund hadn't won against Stuttgart in six competitive matches. Across all competitions, Borussia were unbeaten in their last ten home games, while Stuttgart had earned 15 of their 21 points at home.

Personnel matters:  Coach Niko Kovac had his whole squad available, except for Ramy Bensebaini, Niklas Süle and Julien Duranville. Contrary to the match against Hamburg SV (1-1), Felix Nmecha and Julian Brandt were in the starting 11 instead of Pascal Gross and Daniel Svensson.

Tactics: Both teams started in a 3-4-3 formation, with Stuttgart's three forward mostly playing in a line and rotating positions. VfB pressed high and took on a 5-2-3 formation whenever BVB had possession. Both teams had very offensive players on the left flank: Beier for BVB and Leweling for VfB. Consequently, much of the teams' attacking play came from the left wings.

The match & analysis:Borussia started nervously and found themselves mostly pinned back on their own half during the opening phase. The fans' 12th-minute silent protest , as a signal to politicians, occured unintentionally at the same time as Dortmund's equally long period of not having any inspiration on the pitch. When, after 12 minutes, the fans finally made their voices heard again, the players suddenly woke up and became significantly more active. Nevertheless, VfB Stuttgart were the better team until halfway through the first half and they also had the first scoring opportunity: Tomas fired the ball just wide of the post (19).

Beier was the one who first threatened the Stuttgart goal in the 27th minute and after 31 minutes, Dortmund won their first corner. It was cleared, but Can quickly passed the ball back out to Ryerson on the right. Ryerson's cross saw Undav collide with the onrushing Schlotterbeck. Can converted the resulting penalty by placing it low to the left to make it 1-0. Goalkeeper Nübel went the same way, but the BVB captain's shot was too well-placed. Dortmund could have doubled their lead immediately when, after a pass from Brandt, Ryerson found himself in a good position. His shot from 14 meters was blocked, however, and Stuttgart defenders cleared the ball ahead of Beier on the left side of the six-yard box and again ahead of Bellingham, who attempted a second shot from 16 meters (36). Another ball from Can, this time from his own half to the right wing, led to the second goal. Ryerson sent the advancing Anton through, who then passed across the box to Guirassy, ​​whose low shot was saved by Nübel. The Stuttgart keeper was also on hand to deny Beier on the follow-up. Beier followed up and put away the second rebound to score 2-0 (41). Brandt made a determined run down the left shortly before halftime, but Chabot cleared.

The second half began much like the first, with Dortmund giving the ball away easily and the guests being more dominant. Brandt lost possession in his own half, and neither Stiller nor Mittelstädt were challenged. El Khannouss headed the cross from the left into the middle, but Kobel hesitated, and Undav, with his back towards the goal, acrobatically scored from four meters out (47). Shortly afterward, Assignon broke through but his shot went wide (48).

Five minutes later, Dortmund launched their first real attack, which Guirassy seemingly finished off with a goal, making it 3-1. But VAR intervened. Both a foul and a possible offside position of the BVB striker were reviewed: offside, no goal. Chukwuemeka hit the crossbar (64, offside called) and instead, Stuttgart equalised. After a foul by Beier, Stuttgart were given a free kick: Tiago Tomas tried a direct shot from 20 meters, but the wall cleared it for a corner which led to the 2-2 equaliser. Mittelstädt headed the ball down to Undav, who stuck out his left leg and fired it into the net from the left side of the six-yard box (70).

It took until the 80th minute for Dortmund to start creating chances again. First, Guirassy controlled Beier's cross nicely into the penalty area, but he was denied a shot by Hendriks at the six-yard box (82). Seconds later, substitute Adeyemi controlled a low ball well, but his shot was saved by Nübel. Then, in the 89th minute, SIGNAL IDUNA PARK erupted: Beier stopped a Stuttgart attack, Guirassy sent Adeyemi, who had covered half the pitch, through on goal and he passed the ball to Beier at the edge of the box, who set himself up to shoot but instead passed back inside to Adeyemi, who slotted home to make it 3-2. Stuttgart, however, responded immediately. Führich played the ball inside, and at the penalty spot, Undav beat Schlotterbeck and placed the ball low and just inside of the left post (90+1).

Outlook:

The next match will take place on Tuesday (21:00 CET) at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK, where Borussia Dortmund and FC Villareal will face each other on Matchday 5 of the UEFA Champions League.Boris Rupert

Teams & Goals

Bundesliga, Matchday 11BORUSSIA DORTMUND 3–3 (2-0) VFB STUTTGART