Dortmund celebrates a duo that's celebrating itself too | OneFootball

After Santiago Mourino made it 1-1 in the 67th minute, the home win Borussia Dortmund had been aiming for against last season’s third-placed team from Spain briefly hung in the balance. Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel even prevented a possible deficit, and coach Niko Kovac once again showed a golden touch with his substitutions: Jobe Bellingham shored up the center of midfield, while Fabio Silva came alive up front. The 24-year-old Portuguese set up Serhou Guirassy for the 2-1 goal in the 80th minute and would probably have scored himself several times if former Leipzig goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi had not produced three outstanding saves in the 76th, 83rd, and 90th minutes.

In the end, the scoreboard showed a 3-2 win for BVB. It was a deserved victory considering the expected goals based on chance quality — 2.83 to 1.34 — as well as the 18:13 shot count. In doing so, the Black and Yellows continued an attractive trend. Across BVB’s 16 matches in the two league phases of 2024/25 and 2025/26, the combined total of 70 goals at both ends was the highest in Europe. They are currently averaging 4.4 goals per match.

“My team did a really good job”

“We saw a great football match. My team did a really good job,” were Niko Kovac’s words of praise after the game. “We deserved to win because we showed a lot of what we are capable of. Our possession play in the first half was excellent, and in the second half we created many good chances.” But they also allowed a few. “Of course the opponent had more opportunities than I had hoped for,” the head coach admitted, “but we also had a very, very good opponent on the other side.”

But Fabio Silva and two-goal scorer Serhou Guirassy (who converted a penalty for 3-1 in the 85th minute) were even better. “Fabio is doing really well. He’s thriving and doing what he can do: working hard for the team, creating lots of chances, and of course he is very valuable as a provider of assists,” said Kovac, who hinted that in future he could alternate tactically and in terms of personnel between a 3-4-3 and a 3-5-2: “You can see that we can play this system with two strikers just as well as with one striker and two wide forwards.”

Guirassy: “I’m very happy with Fabio”

So in future, when BVB line up, it may more often be Guirassy and Silva — not or. “I play better when I play with him,” the Portuguese explained in an interview with BVB-TV: “We can create more space for each other. We create more chances and are more present in the penalty area.” Guirassy also argued in favor of a two-man strike force and tried to talk his teammate into the team: “It’s not always easy for him. I’m very happy with Fabio. He has made the difference in the last two games. I know him very well, we speak the same football language, and tonight we’re all happy.”

Even more important than who plays for BVB is the way they perform. Top scorer Serhou Guirassy knows that too: “In the last two games, it was mainly about team spirit. And we have to keep that attitude. And the players who come on make the difference. That is important for a big club. Let’s work on achieving something great.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.