Bundesliga
BVB victory at SC: encouragement, but not yet a liberation
Dortmund’s Mats Hummels (r) celebrates after his goal to make it 4:2. photo
© Tom Weller/dpa
Dortmund gained important points and self-confidence in the spectacular 4-2 win in Freiburg for the hit against PSG. Double goalscorer Hummels stands out, but short-time worker Füllkrug also gives hope.
With a punting goal out of the low mood. The relief was visible to the Borussia Dortmund players and those in charge after the hard-fought 4:2 (1:2) win at SC Freiburg – and double packer Mats Hummels was the celebrated man.
Coach Edin Terzic said the defense chief did a “really good job”. Nevertheless, like sports director Sebastian Kehl, he saw that the runner-up was “not yet at 100 percent”. The second success of the season in the Bundesliga was an important boost for the Champions League hit at Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday (9 p.m./Amazon Prime), but not yet a liberating blow.
Hummels: “We want to be a top team”
The team took a “real step forward” two weeks after the embarrassing 2-2 (2-0) against promoted team 1. FC Heidenheim, said Kehl. Knowing full well that she still has plenty of room for improvement and now has a mammoth task ahead of her in the premier class. The 43-year-old explained that against PSG’s starting group it would certainly take “a really good performance to survive there and survive in this difficult group.” The 2-3 defeat against OGC Nice in the league on Friday showed that not everything is going smoothly for the French around offensive ace Kylian Mbappé.
BVB defender Marius Wolf wants to “go home with something” from Paris. AC Milan and Newcastle United are Dortmund’s other preliminary round opponents in the premier class. It can’t hurt to get a point or two early on. Borussia now has eight points in the league. They are only two points away from the top of the table, but the Black and Yellows are still a bit further away from their own demands.
“Finding solutions against a pressing opponent and then, above all, having a certain class and calmness on the ball – that is clearly something that we have to improve on if we want to be a top team,” analyzed veteran Hummels after the game in Freiburg on the Sky microphone. The 34-year-old’s insight was not new. The fact that they fluctuate too much within a game and lose control at times has been a problem for Dortmund for a long time. Possibly her biggest when it comes to titles.
Kehl: “Mats is incredibly important”
In Freiburg, too, the game slipped away from the Black and Yellows at times, but unlike against Heidenheim, for example, they did not completely lose their head and order. The fact that after the red card against SC professional Nicolas Höfler (81st minute) Hummels, of all people, ensured the late turnaround and the 3-2 score fit into the picture. He poked the ball over the line from close range in the 88th minute, surpassing Frank Mill as the oldest Bundesliga double goalscorer in the club’s history. Hummels had already made history with his first goal in the 11th minute. The defensive man has now scored in 16 seasons in a row – setting a league record.
“Mats is incredibly important,” said sports director Kehl. The 76-time national player is a “leader” and “someone who has great experience – even in difficult situations.” Hummels might have benefited the team against Heidenheim with his calmness and overview, Terzic admitted in retrospect. Against the Swabians, the coach left him out for 90 minutes, this time he put Niklas Süle on the bench.
Niclas Füllkrug also came from last minute shopping in Freiburg. The national striker, who missed the recent international matches against Japan (1:4) and France (2:1) due to thigh problems, had “fitted in well,” said Terzic. Füllkrug prepared the 2-2 through Donyell Malen (60th) and, unlike the once again weak Sébastien Haller, was directly involved in the game. According to Terzic, it remains to be seen whether it will be enough against PSG for more than half an hour. The short appearance of the ex-Bremer player was definitely a further encouragement.