Almost ten years ago: The last time HSV beat BVB! | OneFootball

For 2,829 days, HSV and Borussia Dortmund had not faced each other in a competitive match. The last Hamburg victory goes back even further—and it was a spectacular one.

The encounter on November 20, 2015, took place under special circumstances. The preceding days were marked by intense security debates following the terrorist attacks surrounding the international match between France and Germany. The match against the Netherlands in Hannover, scheduled shortly thereafter, was even canceled due to a terror threat. As a result, heightened security measures were in place at the Volksparkstadion. Referee Felix Zwayer’s whistle sounded almost a quarter of an hour later than planned due to extensive checks.

Despite the challenging circumstances, 57,000 spectators showed up, and they could hardly believe their eyes. HSV posed major problems for Borussia Dortmund, who, under Thomas Tuchel in their first year after Jürgen Klopp, had made an impressive start to the season. The Hanseatic team was by no means just waiting and hoping for counterattacks; instead, they put direct pressure on their opponents, who were second in the league behind Bayern Munich.

Holtby Shines: HSV Catches BVB Off Guard

Lewis Holtby was in particularly fine form—a verdict rarely given during his five years in Hamburg. With a wonderful pass, he sent Ivo Ilicevic on his way, who charged toward goal and was ultimately brought down by keeper Roman Bürki. Pierre-Michel Lasogga confidently converted the ensuing penalty to make it 1-0 (19’).

Photo: Getty Images

Afterwards, HSV continued to outplay BVB. The experienced team, including veterans like Emir Spahic—who had to leave early due to injury—Johan Djourou, and Gojko Kacar, played with great composure and brought the necessary intensity to beat a Bundesliga top team. The next attacking move led to the 2-0 in the 41st minute. After a misplaced pass from Matthias Ginter, Nicolai Müller—then an offensive linchpin—reacted instantly, set up Holtby, who scored unstoppably into the left corner.

After the break, things got even better for the Rothosen. Mats Hummels also had an off night and deflected a Holtby corner into his own net—3-0 (55’). The Volksparkstadion turned into a house of joy. Thoughts about the tense security situation faded for a while. From the stands, chants like “Whoever doesn’t jump is a Bremen fan” rang out in anticipation of the upcoming northern derby at Werder Bremen, with almost the entire stadium joining in.

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On the pitch, the match gradually turned. Despite leading 3-0 with only two shots on target, HSV found themselves almost exclusively on the defensive. René Adler pulled off several brilliant saves, so there was no more tension. The now-dominant BVB only managed a consolation goal in the 86th minute through Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who, by the way, is still hunting goals at Olympique Marseille today.

HSV – Borussia Dortmund 3:1 (2:0)

HSV: Adler,-Sakai, Djourou, Spahic (29' Cleber), Ostrzolek,-Jung, Kacar (71' Gregoritsch),-Müller, Holtby (81' Díaz), Ilicevic,-Lasogga

BVB: Bürki,-Ginter (46' Pisczcek), Sokratis, Hummels, Schmelzer,-Gündogan, Weigl, Kagawa (46' Castro),-Mkhitaryan, Aubameyang, Reus (69' Januzaj)

Thus, it was only the second defeat of the season for BVB. “For at least 45 minutes, we fell so dramatically short of our standards that you have to say we weren’t ready to play this game from the very first second,” Tuchel complained after the match. Incidentally, in spring 2015, he was considered a hot candidate for the head coach position at HSV before Dortmund intervened.

In a time of great need, Bruno Labbadia once again took over, securing survival with the memorable relegation victory in Karlsruhe and experiencing probably the best weeks of his second tenure around the win against Dortmund. A week later, an impressive 3-1 win in Bremen followed. Even European places were within reach. In the end, they finished with 41 points and tenth place. Such a result would bring great joy to HSV even today—just like a victory over BVB, who are once again arriving as second in the league.

Photo: Getty Images

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