There is a certain indecipherability inherent in Erling Braut Haaland, which occasionally gives rise to puzzles. For example: in the second half of last week. Because after the 3-0 win of his Borussia against SpVgg Greuther Fürth he turned something that looked like a lonely lap of honor, in which the next wanted to interpret a farewell to the Yellow Wall.
Whereby: Those responsible saw a need for clarification. “I saw the pictures too. It looked strange,” said Dortmund manager Michael Zorc on Saturday, saying that he personally asked Haaland what this gesture might have been about. The conclusion: “I don’t think it was a deliberate action,” Zorc speculated. The manager stated this on Saturday before the game at Hertha, and because of this history, he too must have paid special attention to how Haaland’s departure from the stage called the Berlin Olympiastadion went when Borussia lost 3-2 at Hertha.
Well, it went like this: Haaland trudged away. Not as if he had to go to the bathroom urgently, but definitely in a hurry and determined. His expression? More stone than the Roald Amundsen statue in Tromso, northern Norway. And it didn’t even take that much imagination to interpret the Norwegian version of the former Leverkusen player Emerson in Haaland. The legendary “This-club-will-never-win” Emerson, to be precise. In order, to put it another way, to recognize a slowly resigning man in Haaland.
“Dirty game”: BVB boss Watzke means above all the place in the Berlin Olympic Stadium
It wasn’t just that BVB had lost. The gap to the league leaders FC Bayern Munich is now nine points, which is a lot per se, but all the more since BVB was only one point behind Bayern before the direct duel on December 4 in the Westfalenstadion at home and from the following games in Bochum, against Fürth and now in Berlin just collected four points. And that also relativized the lawsuit, the BVB managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke on Sunday at the image-Let the newspaper off the stack. A “dirty game” was the 2: 3, which was played on an “unworthy” because “loamy” ground. Which was true objectively. But hadn’t Hertha played on the same pitch?
Yes, she did, and it also happened that BVB had led 1-0 at halftime, and that after Hertha had been denied a goal for almost flimsy reasons. “It is right that we (…) should have used the momentum for ourselves,” said BVB coach Marco Rose, after all, Hertha had just returned from an embarrassing 4-0 defeat at Mainz 05. But Borussia did not. Instead, she put her hands in her pants pockets, at least figuratively, just as Coach Rose literally does so often when he’s on the sidelines. The result: Hertha hurried away. “We lead 1-0 in difficult conditions and then give away goals,” said Rose annoyed.
One goal and three assists: Julian Brandt (left) first brought BVB into the lead and then helped Hertha turn the game.
(Photo: Dennis Ewert / RHR-Foto / imago)
The lead (which followed, among other things, two clear chances from Marco Reus) was created by Julian Brandt with a velvety stroke against the ball, which flew over Hertha’s goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow (31st). After the break, it was Brandt who did so much for Hertha’s comeback that it was hard to believe. Before the interim equalization, he lost a ball in midfield – although to save his honor it would have to be said that the later goalscorer Ishak Belfodil would probably have been put by the 450 Bundesliga players, who are faster than Axel Witsel, before he put the ball under the could also push the unlucky substitute goalkeeper Marwin Hitz.
Before Marco Richter’s two goals – two full shots from the edge of the box – Brandt made two obviously big blunders. The 2: 3 of substitute Steffen Tigges (83rd) was not worth mentioning in the end, because after the break the Dortmunders moved across the lawn with the same intensity as you stroll through the Christmas market. “Now we are dragging a defeat with us on vacation,” Rose annoyed, and then tried to strike a conciliatory tone – or to demand it from the press, it was not very clear. “Don’t forget: We are table twists!” Shouted Rose.
Only: Nine points behind Bayern are extremely sobering in view of the dreams and claims proclaimed at the beginning of the season (according to Rose: “Bayern annoy!”). Especially since BVB has left the Champions League in a group that is not particularly strong. Rose doesn’t have to worry that he has “complete backing, complete confidence,” emphasized Watzke. Although he should not have escaped the fact that the same team – with the exception of Jadon Sancho, who moved to Manchester – performed completely differently under coach Edin Terzic six months ago when they won the DFB Cup in Berlin. Or does Watzke think that the defensive with players like Meunier, Schulz, Wolf, Can and Pongracic is on a different level than the offensive?
Watzke confirms Real Madrid’s interest in Haaland
Perhaps that gives food for thought to Erling Haaland, who was silent on Saturday. He has not been able to save himself from offers for a long time. Watzke spoke of a guaranteed interest of the Spanish record champions Real Madrid, the ruined FC Barcelona is looking for ways to manage a seemingly unlikely transfer, and there are also top English teams. That doesn’t mean that Haaland, which was bound by 2024, is already gone. BVB wants to fight for Haaland and, in case of doubt, “also pay 2.50 euros more” to convince the Norwegian to stay, said Watzke. Manager Zorc, in turn, made it clear that Haaland could leave the club in the summer under certain circumstances – i.e. in the case of paying a transfer fee of 2.5o euros plus X -.
You will sit down with Haaland after the turn of the year, Zorc said on Saturday. So before the defeat, and thus long before the moment when you had to at least consider the thought that Haaland might have made a decision for himself.