Bundesliga current: Leverkusen and Dortmund lose points

The train ride to Oberschöneweide has long caused symptoms of stress in Dortmund fans, and the away game at 1. FC Union has long been considered a so-called mentality test, which BVB failed with regularity. There were three defeats in five games since the Iron Men returned to the Bundesliga before kick-off. In almost every season analysis of Borussia, the sentence that you have to win games like at Union in order to attack at the front was correct. And it may well be the same at the end of this season.

Dortmund lost 2-1 this time and managed to dispel the euphoria after their 7-1 win in the Champions League against Celtic after just a few days. The new coach Nuri Sahin now has to face old debates, the whole club must feel like it is in a repeat loop.

The fact that things didn’t go as planned was evident in the early stages when goalkeeper Gregor Kobel had to clear a ball with a Manuel Neuer diving header far in front of his own goal. Shortly afterwards, Nico Schlotterbeck confirmed his critics who accused him of sometimes acting too carelessly in sensitive situations. He caused another penalty that a class defender doesn’t cause, even if Benedict Hollerbach very gratefully accepted his outstretched leg. Kevin Vogt converted the penalty. More worrying than the goal was the fact that BVB didn’t regain control of the game even after that; the 2-0, a long-range shot by Yorbe Vertessen after a corner, was almost the logical consequence.

After the break, Vertessen could have increased again, BVB had a good chance through Maxi Beier, who was in the starting line-up for the second time. Only then did Borussia take part seriously in the game and after one of the few consistent moves, in which Serhou Guirassy, ​​among others, strongly defended the ball, the former Union player Julian Ryerson scored the next goal. Union remained dangerous on the counterattack, Kobel and the side netting were in the way. But above all, the hosts put their feared concrete block in front of the goal, which once brought them to the Champions League. BVB despaired.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen – Holstein Kiel 2:2 (2:1), Tore: 1:0 Victor Boniface (4.), 2:0 Jonas Hofmann (8.), 2:1 Max Geschwill (45th + 5), 2:2 Jann-Fiete Arp (69th, penalty kick)

Leverkusen had dressed up: black jerseys, red collar, red cuffs, yellow button placket. Retro design is called something like that and it always comes into play when it comes to historical contexts. The choices were 120 years of Bayer 04 and Xabi Alonso’s 100th competitive game as Leverkusen head coach. Given the starting situation – the champions host newly promoted teams and the bottom of the table – the fashionable restraint seemed appropriate, as the game promised more than enough Leverkusen bows and ruffles.

And that’s how the game began: After three minutes, Leverkusen led 1-0 through Victor Boniface, five minutes later 2-0 thanks to Jonas Hofmann’s first goal of the season, a humorless kick after a botched shot by Kiel keeper Timon Weiner. Alonso clenched his fists, he knows how important early goals can be against a supposedly easy opponent. Kiel’s best defender up to that point was Keller from Cologne, who conceded the supposed 3-0 by Boniface (25th minute) because of offside.

But then the thread broke in the Leverkusen game. The hosts first allowed the harmless Kiel team to make it 2-1 in stoppage time in the first half, Max Geschwill pushed the ball over the line with his shoulder after a corner. Frimpong then gave the guests a penalty, which Fiete Arp converted to make it 2-2 (69′). And suddenly Kiel was playing on an equal footing. Benedikt Pichler even had the 2:3 on his head, but Bayer keeper Hradecky scratched his touchdown shot over the crossbar. And despite seven minutes of added time, Leverkusen now has a big, ugly stain on their stylish vest.

SV Werder Bremen – SC Freiburg 0:1 (0:0), Tor: 0:1 Ritsu Dōan (75.)

Two teams with a solid start to the season and a rosy outlook meet on a sunny autumn day on the Weser. And when the conditions are so picturesque, then you can switch down a gear on the field – the players probably thought and played for 45 minutes, largely inconsequential. In the 17th minute, Felix Agu had the best chance for Werder, Noah Atubolu saved with a bit of luck, shortly before the break Vincenzo Grifo also had a good shot opportunity for Freiburg, but there wasn’t much more excitement.

The game also screamed for a draw in the second half until Ritsu Doan noticed that the Bremen defense simply didn’t want to stop him. His shot was deflected unstoppably by Werder’s Marco Friedl. The sports club takes three points away with comparatively little effort and is currently third in the table. If Werder miss a point at some point, they can look back on this game with anger.

VfL Bochum – VfL Wolfsburg 1:3 (0:2), Goals: 0:1 Tiago Tomás (21st), 0:2 Jonas Wind (37th), 1:2 Myron Boadu (72nd), 1:3 Jonas Wind (88th, penalty kick according to video evidence)

It took less than 20 minutes in Bochum and Max Burda’s profound legal knowledge was required. The 35-year-old with a doctorate in criminal defense from Berlin had whistled a penalty for Bochum after Aster Vranckx was hit in the arm from close range. It was Burda’s first penalty whistle in the first Bundesliga, as the game between the two physical training clubs was his first game as main referee in the so-called upper house. A few minutes later, Burda had already taken back his first penalty whistle – Vranckx’s arm had been positioned correctly – and Wolfsburg led again three minutes later.

Tiago Tomás was allowed to calmly receive the ball in the penalty area after a dream pass from Mohamed Amoura on the outside of his foot, turn and flick the ball into the far corner with his left. Fifteen minutes later, Jonas Wind made it 2-0 for the guests following a corner, but Marcel Wittek again came far too late, whose 25-meter free kick was Bochum’s best chance of the first half.

That wasn’t good news for Bochum coach Peter Zeidler, as his team hadn’t scored a goal in the second half this season. The first big chance in the second half belonged to Wolfsburg again: Amoura hit the ball on the post and substitute Patrick Wimmer hit the crossbar. But at some point there is always the first time, and Myron Boadu reduced the score to 1:2. Then the lawyer Burda was asked again: After checking the video, this time he awarded a penalty against Bochum, which Wind shot into the goal in the follow-up to make the decision.

FC St. Pauli – FSV Mainz 05 0:3 (0:2), Tore: 0:1 Jonathan Burkardt (5.), 0:2 Armindo Sieb (16.), 0:3 Jonathan Burkardt (62.)

FC St. Pauli would have liked to end their wait for their first home win since promotion. The last time there was a win at Millerntor was on February 12, 2011 (3-1 against Borussia Mönchengladbach). Instead, FSV Mainz 05 ended Hamburg’s short upward trend (0-0 against RB Leipzig, 3-0 at SC Freiburg) with ruthless efficiency and remained unbeaten in the third away game of the season.

Jonathan Burkardt and Armindo Sieb took advantage of two of the few chances to score in the first half, each benefiting from errors by St. Pauli goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj and defense chief Eric Smith. At 0-1, Vasilj came out of the goal unnecessarily and Burkardt beat him with the back of his head. At 0-2, St. Pauli’s otherwise confident defensive organizer Smith initiated Mainz’s second goal with a bad pass to Nadiem Amiri. Amiri passed the ball to Siem, who gave Vasilj no opportunity. This meant that all of Pauli coach Alexander Blessin’s tactical planning was gone. The hosts pressed, but rarely got into promising finishing positions. Johannes Eggestein had one (25th), but failed due to FSV goalkeeper Robin Zentner.

FC St. Pauli struggled on offense after the break and had more possession of the ball, but could do little with it. The Mainz team concentrated on a few counterattacks – and were successful again. After another pass from Amiri, captain Burkardt made it 3-0. With that the game was over.