Borussia Dortmund got off to a flying start against the defending champions in the Champions League. In the end, however, BVB came away empty-handed. Real showed tremendous comeback qualities.
A strong start, a bitter end – Borussia Dortmund missed out on another surprise in the rematch of the Champions League final against Real Madrid. Just under five months after their unfortunate 0-2 defeat in the showdown at Wembley, the previous leaders of the Champions League lost 2-5 (2-0) to the defending champions from Spain in their third preliminary round match.
Unlike in the Bundesliga recently, BVB put in a courageous performance in front of 85,000 spectators at the Bernabéu soccer temple in the first half and had hopes of a first win against the Spanish record champions after goals from Donyell Malen (30th minute) and Jamie Gittens (34th). But the defending champions struck back in their inimitable style and turned the game around with goals from Antonio Rüdiger (60th minute), Vinícius Júnior (62nd/86th/90+3rd minutes) and Lucas Vázquez (83rd minute).
Nevertheless, Borussia’s position remains respectable after a successful start to the competition with victories over Bruges (3-0) and Celtic Glasgow (7-1). Their next opponent is Sturm Graz on November 5 in Dortmund.
Coach Sahin showed courage against the favorites and dropped regulars Waldemar Anton, Pascal Groß, and Emre Can from the starting lineup. Niklas Süle, Felix Nmecha, and Gittens came in to replace them and were expected to provide new momentum after the team’s recent poor Bundesliga performances.
In front of Dortmund’s former coach Edin Terzic, who was now watching the game as a fan, BVB started with commitment and had the first shot on goal early on. However, Serhou Guirassy’s shot was too central to cause any problems for Thibaut Courtois in the home side’s goal. At the other end, Nmecha blocked superstar Kylian Mbappé’s first promising attempt.
Borussia played cleverly. Dortmund kept possession for long periods and controlled the game. It paid off. The Revierclub avoided mistakes by not rushing their build-up play, rarely allowed Real to get into counter-attacking situations and made the most of their few chances.
After a mistake by Vázquez in the Real penalty area, Guirassy held up the ball well with his back to goal. The center forward laid the ball perfectly for Malen, and the Dutchman sent the traveling BVB fans into raptures. And it got even better for the Black and Yellows. Malen broke through on the right, passed low into the middle, where Gittens escaped the Madrid defense and made it 2-0.
The crossbar helps BVB
Now it got wild. Real responded with furious attacks. Within a few seconds, Rodrygo and then former Dortmund player Jude Bellingham hit the crossbar (29′). At the other end, Julian Brandt failed to beat Courtois with a powerful long-range shot.
After the break, Real increased the pressure. Sahin brought on Anton as an additional defender for winger Gittens, but it didn’t help. The hosts equalized with two goals in quick succession. First, German international Rüdiger scored with a header from close range, then Vinícius Júnior finished off an attack after some involuntary assistance from Nico Schlotterbeck to make it 2-2.
BVB seemed to be down in the dumps, while Madrid had the wind in their sails. Dortmund couldn’t even come close to matching their controlled performance from the first 45 minutes. Almost inevitably, Real sealed the game in the closing stages with three goals. Vinícius Júnior emerged as the match winner.