Two Dortmund players marked different milestones against Heidenheim | OneFootball

The victory for BVB in the 3-2 match against the bottom-ranked 1. FC Heidenheim was uncertain until the end. Ultimately, they succeeded, which is why this match, in which two Dortmund players celebrated different anniversaries with BVB, will be remembered positively.

Deputy captain Nico Schlotterbeck played a crucial role. Besides his solid performance during the game, he made a decision that possibly secured the victory and boosted a teammate's confidence. When BVB was trailing 1-2 and awarded a hand penalty, Schlotterbeck initially intended to take it himself. He changed his mind, allowing Serhou Guirassy to take the lead, not without asking the stadium for moral support for the struggling striker.

Guirassy converted the penalty, scored again shortly after, and with two goals, became the match-winner. Thus, Nico Schlotterbeck, as in many of his now 100 Bundesliga games, had a significant impact on the events on the field and the final result. Since his transfer from SC Freiburg to BVB, Nico Schlotterbeck has now played exactly one hundred times in the Bundesliga. In these 100 Bundesliga games, he has scored nine goals and provided fourteen assists as a center-back. In total, he has already played 149 competitive matches for Borussia, who may soon have him as their regular captain.

Photo: imago images

Veteran Michael Zorc also far ahead of Schlotterbeck and Kobel

However, it was Gregor Kobel's 200th competitive match for BVB on Sunday. The keeper joined BVB in 2021, a year before Schlotterbeck. Among the established forces in the squad, the Swiss is the third-longest serving after Julian Brandt and Emre Can. That he didn't finish the match with a clean sheet this time, as has often been the case this season, is only a minor downside to this milestone for Gregor Kobel.

In the Bundesliga, the keeper now stands at 135 appearances for Borussia Dortmund. Additionally, he has played 43 times in the Champions League, 14 times in the DFB-Pokal, and twice in the Europa League for BVB. This includes participation in the German Supercup and the five matches last summer at the Club World Cup in the USA.

However, neither of the celebrants has won a title with BVB yet, or any title at all. Nico Schlotterbeck did become European Champion in 2021, but not in the senior category, rather with the U21. Both are still far from the leader in terms of appearances for BVB despite their anniversaries. Michael Zorc played 572 competitive matches in the Borussia Dortmund jersey, 463 of which were in the Bundesliga.

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