Serhou Guirassy celebrated a dream comeback at VfB Stuttgart and gave Borussia Dortmund another setback. The striker came on as a substitute in the Swabians’ 2-1 (1-1) win against BVB on Saturday and scored the winning goal with a penalty kick in the 83rd minute. Dortmund are now eight points behind league leaders FC Bayern Munich. BVB keeper Gregor Kobel made several strong saves, but also caused two penalties – and was only able to save one of them. Borussia also lost Mats Hummels, who had to leave the field with injuries.
Niclas Füllkrug (36th minute) gave BVB, who had been disappointing for a long time, the lead, Deniz Undav (42nd) equalized in front of 55,000 spectators. Then Guirassy made the decision as a joker.
Deserved reward: Serhou Guirassy converts the penalty to make it 2-1
Source: AFP/THOMAS KIENZLE
Four days after beating Newcastle 2-0 in the Champions League, Dortmund played a shockingly weak first half. They were harmless at the front, but at the back they had the biggest problems with Stuttgart’s quick attacks. But: VfB missed numerous opportunities – and missed a penalty kick for the third time in a row. Against Hoffenheim (2:3), Undav didn’t put the ball in the goal from the point, in Heidenheim (0:2) it was Silas. This time Chris Führich was denied in the 11th minute by BVB keeper Kobel, who had caused the penalty himself.
The Swiss was the first Dortmund goalkeeper to save a penalty in the Bundesliga in ten years and subsequently distinguished himself several times – whether against Undav, Stuttgart playmaker Enzo Millot or Jamie Leweling. The Swabians pressed hard, especially in the middle of the first half, but simply didn’t score a goal.
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In the 28th minute, Dortmund’s defensive veteran Hummels, nominated by national coach Julian Nagelsmann for the upcoming international matches against Turkey (November 18th) and Austria (November 21st), had to be replaced with an injury. Ramy Bensebaini replaced the 34-year-old. But the Algerian also failed to stabilize the visitors’ defense.
Dortmund’s lead was all the more surprising. Julian Ryerson brought the ball flat into the penalty area from the right, Füllkrug lurked behind VfB defender Dan-Axel Zagadou and scored his third league goal of the current season from close range.
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The Stuttgart team shook briefly, but then hit back. Leweling passed a long ball from Hiroki Ito to Undav – and he kept his nerve this time. The 1:1 was well deserved.
BVB coach Edin Terzic brought on Marco Reus and Donyell Malen in the second half to boost the offensive. But VfB initially stayed on the trigger and had their first big chance again through Führich (54′). Six minutes later, Dortmund’s Bensebaini and Nico Schlotterbeck almost scored an own goal.
An exciting final half hour began in which Dortmund’s Marcel Sabitzer first hit the post (62′) and Stuttgart’s striker ace Guirassy then celebrated his comeback after an injury break (67′). The guests were now a little better in the game, but VfB ended their penalty epidemic. After Kobel fouled Silas, Guirassy scored for the 15th time this Bundesliga season.
FC Bayern Munich – 1. FC Heidenheim 4:2 (2:0)
FC Bayern took the lead in the table, at least for one night. Thanks to further goals from Harry Kane, the record champions won against promoted team 1. FC Heidenheim 4:2 (2:0). Bayer Leverkusen can overtake Munich again on Sunday.
Kane (14th) gave Bayern the lead with a shot from the turn and scored his 17th goal of the season (44th) before the break. The Englishman has now scored more goals than last season’s top scorers, Niclas Füllkrug and Christopher Nkunku.
Bayern actually had little trouble against the newly promoted team, but in the second half Tim Kleindienst (67′) and Jan-Niklas Beste (70′) scored to equalize after a mistake by Min-jae Kim. Raphaël Guerreiro (72′) put Bayern back in the lead a little later. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (85th) decided the game.
FC Augsburg – TSG Hoffenheim 1:1 (0:1)
A fantastic solo effort from Ermedin Demirovic ensured that FC Augsburg remained unbeaten under new coach Jess Thorup against away specialists TSG Hoffenheim. The FCA captain’s energetic performance for his sixth goal of the season meant the final score was 1-1 (0-1), first offsetting two opponents in a small space and then flicking the ball from an acute angle from the edge of the penalty area into the far corner (53rd minute).
The Hoffenheim team, who did not leave the pitch as winners for the first time in their sixth away game of the season, had led through Wout Weghorst (23′). Bundesliga newcomer Thorup has already scored eight points in four games as FCA coach. There were almost ten. But attacker Demirovic was denied by substitute Arne Engels’ pass in the 81st minute due to the strong reaction of Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann. And Augsburg midfielder Niklas Dorsch missed the shot after a solo run (84′).
A firecracker from the Hoffenheim fan block, which exploded loudly near the corner flag, caused a moment of shock in the second half and an interruption lasting several minutes. The medical service was briefly on duty in the stands behind the goal. It initially remained unclear whether there were any injuries. There was uncertainty for around five minutes. Then referee Felix Brych whistled again. However, the action had an impact and the mood among the 28,260 spectators was temporarily dampened.
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The action on the pitch was intense, fast-paced and dogged. Hoffenheim initially left a slightly better impression. The opening goal came from a corner when FCA defended too passively. Weghorst was able to head in a cross from Marius Bülter undisturbed at the second post. The 31-year-old Dutchman scored in the third game in a row.
FCA reacted well to the deficit, but were unable to equalize. When Fredrik Jensen apparently hit opponent Kevin Akpoguma in the arm during a cross in the penalty area, Brych pointed to the penalty spot. According to the video images, which revealed a hit on Akpoguma’s chest, it ended up being a corner kick. The Augsburgers lacked offensive ideas and the necessary power until the half-time whistle.
A major passing error by central defender Felix Uduokhai in the build-up to the game gave Grischa Prömel a great chance to make it 2-0 for Hoffenheim after the restart. But FCA goalkeeper Finn Dahmen parried the shot, which was not placed well enough (50th). That was a turning point in the game. FCA not only scored through Demirovic, but was the dominant team until extra time. But Baumann stood in the way of the second goal.
Darmstadt 98 – Mainz 05 0-0
No winner in the neighborhood duel: Darmstadt 98 and FSV Mainz 05 separated goalless and are still stuck in the bottom of the table. On Saturday, 17,810 spectators experienced a game on a very modest level and without any highlights.
The draw in the relegation battle doesn’t really help either Hessen (8 points) or Mainz (7), who are at least still unbeaten under interim coach Jan Siewert. Neither team deserved more than one point.
Coach Torsten Lieberknecht was absent from Darmstadt for personal reasons. His assistant Ovid Hajou, who had to do without veteran Tobias Kempe (foot injury) for a short time, initially saw a clearly superior Mainz team on the sidelines.
After the 2-0 win against RB Leipzig the previous week, the Rheinhessen appeared confident from the start and at times tied the lilies in their half. However, the guests were hardly able to create any chances.
A shot from Leandro Barreiro that narrowly missed the target was the only dangerous action in the first half. Otherwise, the 05ers, who presented their attacks too statically, ran out of ideas near the penalty area.
As always, the newcomer was strong in running and fighting, but practically nothing came together in terms of play. Until the break, the Hessians did not fire a single shot at the Mainz goal. So it went into the locker room goalless.
After the change, the home team played a little more courageously and had their first opportunity. However, Oscar Vilhelmsson aimed too imprecisely so that FSV goalkeeper Robin Zentner did not have to intervene.
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However, the level of the game remained modest. There were many duels and bad passes on both sides. None of the rivals, who fought for every centimeter in midfield, posed a goal threat. And when they went forward with purpose, the necessary precision was missing in the end, as was the case with a shot from Mainz’s Anthony Caci (82′).
In the final phase the home team pushed for the winning goal again, but it wouldn’t come. Fraser Hornby (88th) and Mathias Honsak (90th) were denied by Zentner, who saved the guests from conceding a late goal.
