Reaction to 3-2 in Hoffenheim: ‘The subs made a real impact’ | OneFootball

At first, it looked like Borussia Dortmund were heading for an early major setback on just the second matchday, but then they still managed a 3-2 win at TSG Hoffenheim after trailing 0-2. After the match, there was accordingly great joy at BVB, but those in charge and the players also addressed the less-than-ideal aspects.

“Wherever Dortmund play, something always happens! It was the same against Hamburg. After it went to 2-0, you couldn’t really expect it anymore. But we came back. Compliments to the team, they really showed character,” sporting managing director Lars Ricken, quoted on the club website, said in praise of the reaction to the two-goal deficit, before also going into more detail about two substitutes and the defensive leader: “Nwaneri was involved in all of the dangerous moves we had. Even if it wasn’t his goal, he was decisive for the 3-2. Fabio scored one goal and set up another. I’d also like to highlight Waldemar Anton: not only because he brilliantly set up the 1-2, but because of how he held the defense together.”

Ole Book was also very pleased that decisive contributions came from the bench: “The substitutions had a major impact. We know we have a strong squad, and that allows us to decide games late on,” said the sporting director, who would, however, have preferred the starting lineup to function better: “Still, all of us would rather see the impulses come more strongly from the start on the pitch. It was a very intense game. In some phases, we allowed ourselves to be outfought.”

The equalizer as the turning point

Gregor Kobel also saw a key reason why BVB struggled to get into the match in the opponent: “They did very well with their pressing and closing down. They also kept putting us under pressure from open play. We found it very hard to get into the game, struggled to find combinations, also with the second balls, and were chasing the game for a while.”

Photo: IMAGO

However, Kobel then saw the first goal as the turning point and was happy after the match: “After that, it was an open game, a bit back and forth, but we scored the goals. Winning here feels very good.”

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