BVB held 2-2: Brandt's goals and overall dominance not enough for win | OneFootball

The Black & Yellows were clearly superior for long stretches of the first half, taking an early lead through a goal from Julian Brandt (18th minute) and creating chances for more than one goal, but then they failed to pay attention to their opponents' first corner and conceded the equaliser through Haitam Aleesami (42). Just five minutes after the restart, Brandt made it 2-1. When BVB were briefly down to ten men due to an injury, Jens Petter Hauge equalised to make it 2-2. Despite 22 shots on goal to their opponents' seven, Borussia had to settle for a draw in the end.

The scenario:Before Matchday 6, BVB, in sixth place, had recorded three wins, one draw and one defeat. Bodø/Glimt were in 32nd place after two draws and three (narrow) defeats.

Personnel matters:Three days after the Bundesliga match against Hoffenheim (2-0), BVB fielded a team with four changes: Jobe Bellingham, Ramy Bensebaini, Maximilian Beier and Fabio Silva replaced the injured Marcel Sabitzer (muscle stiffness) as well as Daniel Svensson, Karim Adeyemi and Serhou Guirassy (who all moved to the bench).

Tactics:The Black & Yellows started the match with four new players in the line-up and a slightly altered formation. In a 3-4-1-2 set-up, Beier and Fabio Silva formed a strike partnership, with Julian Brandt playing as a playmaker behind them in the number ten role. Bodø/Glimt lined up in a 4-3-3 formation with only one defensive midfielder. When in possession, the Norwegians played confidently going forward, while their immense work rate ensured that there were no gaps when defending.

The match & analysis:After just 15 minutes, the spectators had already seen five chances in an entertaining game – three decent opportunities for BVB, two excellent chances for the visitors through Høgh, who was clean through on Gregor Kobel in the seventh minute but failed to get his shot on target. Five minutes later, he almost made it 1-0 with a powerful shot from the right, but Kobel made an impressive save to deflect the ball onto the post. Dortmund had previously had chances through Brandt, who headed just over the bar in the fifth minute, and Beier, whose shot was blocked in the sixth minute. In the 13th minute, Felix Nmecha tried his luck from outside the box, but Bodø keeper Haikin was on hand to parry the ball away for a corner.

In the 18th minute, BVB took the lead after a quick attack. Fabio Silva had won the ball in midfield and drove towards the North Stand at speed. Two BVB players made supporting runs. Silva decided to pass to Brandt on his left, who slotted home from 14 metres to make it 1-0. Two minutes later, Beier headed a Silva cross just wide of the right post from close range, and Bellingham's header from Schlotterbeck's cross was also not far off (23).

After half an hour, Anton had to come off injured. Svensson took over Bensebaini's position on the left wing, with the Algerian moving into the back three alongside Anselmino and Schlotterbeck. The Black & Yellows continued to dominate the game and had another double chance: first, Fabio Silva tried his luck from the right of the penalty area, but Haikin saved. Beier fired the rebound towards goal with the outside of his right foot, but the keeper was again equal to the effort. Instead, the equaliser came out of nowhere: Bodø took their first corner short, Berg crossed sharply from the left, defender Aleesami rose powerfully and headed home from six metres to make it 1-1 at half-time (42).

Brandt with two goals

Borussia picked up where they left off in the first 30 minutes of the match. Brandt now moved more to the left wing – and was successful again in the 51st minute. After a nice switch of play from Schlotterbeck from the centre to the right wing, Yan Couto sent a low, sharp cross into the box, where Beier was on hand but failed to beat the keeper from close range, only for Brandt to tap in the rebound. In the 58th minute, Beier's shot from distance was only centimetres off target. Shortly afterwards, he again tried his luck from 20 metres out, but Haikin managed to get his fingertips to it. From the resulting corner, Anselmino's header was cleared on the goal line (62).

With a new strike force (Adeyemi and Guirassy came on), the last 25 minutes began. And once again, BVB conceded an equaliser. While Anselmino was receiving treatment off the pitch, the ball slipped through to Hauge, who found the back of the net to make it 2-2 (75). Kobel made a brilliant save to prevent Svensson from scoring an own goal in the 87th minute. Borussia continued to press forward in the closing stages, but their play was too imprecise overall, while the Norwegians did all they could to run down the clock.

Outlook:There are two games left in the league phase in January: on 20 January in London against Tottenham Hotspur and on 28 January at home against Inter Milan. In the Bundesliga, BVB will play twice before Christmas: on Sunday (15:30 CET) in Freiburg and on Friday next week at home against Gladbach.Boris Rupert

Teams & goals

UEFA Champions League, Matchday 6Wednesday, 10 December 2025, 21:00 CETBORUSSIA DORTMUND 2–2 (1-1) FK BODØ/GLIMT

Bor. Dortmund: Kobel – Anselmino (76, Can), Anton (33, Svensson), Schlotterbeck – Couto (76, Ryerson), Bellingham, Nmecha, Bensebaini – Brandt – Beier (67, Adeyemi), Fabio Silva (67, Guirassy)FK Bodø/Glimt: Haikin – Sjøvold, Bjørtuft, Aleesami (67, Nielsen), Määttä (77, Klyng) – Berg, Evjen, Fet (46, Saltnes) – Blomberg (67, Jørgensen), Høgh (67, Helmersen), HaugeSubstitutes: Meyer, Ostrzinski; Gross, Chukwuemeka, Süle, Campbell, Duranville – Brøndbo, Lund Goals: 1-0 Brandt (18, Fabio Silva), 1-1 Aleesami (42, Berg), 2-1 Brandt (51, Beier), 2-2 Hauge (75)Corners: 10-4 (5-1 at half-time), chance ratio: 9-5 (6-3)Referee: Lambrechts (Belgien), bookings: AdeyemiAttendance: 81,365 (sold-out), weather: dry, 10 degrees