Thanks to a flawless team performance, BVB managed to win 5-1 against SC Freiburg, but after the game one player was the number one topic of conversation: Sebastien Haller, who scored for BVB in a competitive game for the first time after a long illness.
Was able to celebrate his first goal in BVB dress: Sebastien Haller (left).
IMAGO/RHR-Photo
Four games, four wins – Borussia Dortmund has had an excellent start to the new year. While the performance in the victories against Augsburg (4:3) and Mainz (2:1) was still “mixed”, they played “really well” against Leverkusen (2:0). In the 5-1 win against SC Freiburg, according to BVB sports director Sebastian Kehl on “Sky”, the team showed a “really confident” and “very mature” performance: “I think the team has now picked up a good rhythm “.
In fact, BVB was dominant over the entire game against Breisgau: 77 percent possession of the ball, 25 shots to six, a pass rate of 90 percent. Of course, the Black and Yellows helped that Freiburg were outnumbered from the 17th minute of the game, but even before that the oppressive superiority was felt against a team that has also scored 34 points so far this season.
Haller’s home game dream comes true
Sebastien Haller was among the five goalscorers who sealed the victory. The center forward, who had switched to the Ruhr area before the season as a new hope for the offensive, fought back after his cancer diagnosis in recent months and celebrated his fourth Bundesliga appearance for BVB (twice Joker, twice Starting eleven) his goal debut. “We are all overjoyed, a great burden has been lifted from him,” Kehl tried to classify the situation surrounding the 28-year-old’s first Bundesliga goal in 1358 days.
Haller not only worked for this moment for a long time, he also wished to score “his first goal in this stadium”, which Kehl said was a message that the striker repeatedly sent within the team. “It means a lot to me. I’ve been waiting for this day since my first day. I’m just happy and I hope that I’ve been able to make a few people happy,” was this impression on his emotional world.
“When I scored the goal it felt like the whole stadium was on fire.” The cheering of the fans, teammates and staff in the sold-out Signal Iduna Park felt “like a huge unit. It gives a huge boost.”
Kehl sees only a foretaste
In Kehl’s eyes, the header hit to make it 3-1 in the meantime was just a foretaste of what Haller has to offer: “I think he can play even better. He will need a game or two to get back in finding his old rhythm, but goals help a striker tremendously and that’s why it will inspire him.”
In fact: “The feeling of scoring goals is the best feeling for a striker. You feel like you’re flying, like on a cloud.” The coming weeks will show whether BVB can continue to float on the cloud. After the cup game in Bochum (Wednesday, 8:45 p.m.), the away game in Bremen (Saturday, 3:30 p.m.) awaits in the league before Chelsea FC (15 February, 9 p.m.) make a guest appearance at Signal-Iduna-Park .
