Dhe greeting was warm, why not? Marco Rose and Edin Terzic worked together at Borussia Dortmund for a year. Rose was coach, Terzic technical director. The piquant thing: As technical director, Terzic’s main task was to wait until those responsible at BVB Roses got tired. That’s what happened at the end of last season. Unsurprisingly, Terzic took over the coaching post for Rose.
This history is definitely part of the plot of the game between RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund. This is the only way to understand the joy Rose felt after the 3-0 win over his former Dortmund team, even if he then made it clear: “There was zero satisfaction or anything. I’m just happy about my first win here in Leipzig,” said Rose.
However, this separation was not completely silent between Rose and BVB, nor was his latest engagement. On Wednesday, Leipzig parted ways with coach Domenico Tedesco after two serious bankruptcies in the Bundesliga and the Champions League, and Rose was presented as his successor a day later. Anything but a normal job for the 45-year-old. Leipzig is his birthplace and hometown, his family lives there and he also works there now.
joy of playing and passion
That his first opponent should be the club that didn’t want him after just one year – almost too cheesy to be true. Rose had announced in advance that he wanted to do things differently and kept his word. Defensively, he switched to a back four and brought some new strength. It was noticeable that these were mainly those who were hardly in demand under Tedesco. Emil Forsberg or Dominik Szoboszlai. The expensive additions Abdou Diallo and Xaver Schlager were also allowed to play.
The reasoning behind it worked. The only thing RB’s team had in common with the one that lost 4-0 in Frankfurt and 4-1 in Donetsk was the crest on the chest. The rest: a joy and passion that has never been seen this season. Leipzig dominated the game from the start and confidently picked up three points against an opponent who suffered their second defeat in six games. “We deservedly lost against a very strong team,” said Dortmund coach Terzic.
Sure, the course of the game was enormously beneficial for the people of Leipzig. Just after six minutes, Willi Orban converted a corner kick from Szoboszlai with a header to make it 1-0. A variant studied under Rose, as confirmed by the corner kicker. “Yes, I was supposed to take the ball to the penalty spot, that worked quite well,” said Szoboszlai. The lead gave the team security and Rose certainty that they had put their trust in the right players.
In central defense, he called on Diallo, who had been brought from Paris, and initially dispensed with Josko Gvardiol, for whom Chelsea had offered a high two-digit million amount a few days ago. Xaver Schlager, whom Rose had already coached in Salzburg, made a strong debut in the Bundesliga. The Austrian covered many spaces and provided stability exactly where it was needed.
Dortmund, on the other hand, never got into the game. Mechanisms that previously worked at BVB could not be seen. Instead, much remained patchwork. Until half-time, the guests did not manage a dangerous attack, the new Leipzig back four was not subjected to any serious testing. The build-up game in midfield was sloppy, and bad passes keep preventing progress. Anthony Modeste looked like a foreign body in the center of the storm.
Szoboszlai tells ein Traumtor
On the other hand, Leipzig’s offensive forces harmonized splendidly. Timo Werner was repeatedly staged by Forsberg, Szoboszlai and Christopher Nkunku playing behind him. With his speed he caused the Dortmund defenders big problems. Werner could have made the result clearer before the break. Szoboszlai, who scored a dream goal from 25 meters, was then left to extend the lead. Dortmund goalkeeper Alexander Meyer, who replaced the injured Gregor Kobel, had no chance.
The picture hardly changed in the second half. Leipzig remained decisive, Werner had good opportunities. The final decision came when the outstanding Szoboszlai took the ball from Dortmund’s Thomas Meunier on the sidelines. Szoboszlai crossed the ball to substitute Amadou Haidara, who scored to make it 3-0. Haidara had also hardly played under Tedesco.
