Only after the final whistle did Edin Terzic seem relieved of heavy burdens. To the delight of the Dortmund coach, he was spared a rude awakening in the 1-0 (1-0) win over TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.
Unlike the historic last-minute blackout against Bremen (2:3), his team saved the lead over time despite a shaky final phase. BVB seems to be back on track just in time for the start of the Champions League against FC Copenhagen. "If you compare that with what happened against Werder, it was a clear step forward. We got back the points that we missed before," said the coach.
A week after the well-deserved but endangered 1-0 win at Hertha BSC, the Revierclub made further amends for the shame against Bremen. The best performance of the season, enhanced by Marco Reus' early goal (16th minute), was seen by everyone involved as a successful dress rehearsal for the group start in the European premier class on Tuesday (6.45 p.m. / Amazon) against the Danish champions at the same venue. "After the last home game we were shocked and tried to get into the next wave. It was important to get into the flow. Then everything will be a little easier," said Captain Reus.
Lightness is still missing
But with all the pride about the famous performance, especially in the 1. nd half, flaws remained unmistakable. Borussia is still a long way from the lightness of a top team that sometimes wins games without maximum effort. As with the previous successes over Leverkusen (1: 0), Freiburg (3: 1) and Hertha BSC, the duel with Hoffenheim, who had previously tied on points, was a feat of strength. "One small drawback is that we didn't close the sack. In the end it was a bit shaky. We have to do ourselves the favor of not getting into such a situation in the first place," recommended offensive player Julian Brandt.
Similar to the national player, Terzic also complained about the inconsistent handling of goal chances: "You see a development, you see a process. But now we still have to learn how to put the balls in the net." At least the defensive didn't falter again against the guests, who played more strongly after the break but were mostly harmless. "In the end we were very serious in our goal defense and dealt with the situation professionally," said the coach.
youngster injured
Dortmund's joy was marred by the injury to Jamie Bynoe-Gittens. In a supposedly harmless running duel with Ozan Kabak, the 18-year-old talent sustained a shoulder injury and had to be replaced by Thorgan Hazard before the break. "The shoulder was out. That's unbelievable," Terzic complained, referring to similar incidents in the young season with Nico Schlotterbeck and Mahmoud Dahoud. Bynoe-Gittens left the stadium in the night with a black and yellow shoulder sling and his appearance against Copenhagen on Tuesday seems unlikely. "We hope that he will come back as soon as possible," said Terzic.
Similar hopes have been dashed at Dahoud. The 26-year-old BVB pacemaker, who dislocated his shoulder against Bremen, has to undergo an operation. "We have decided to have an operation," said sporting director Sebastian Kehl before the game against Hoffenheim kicked off, adding that the international "can't play until November".
