Over the past few days, people in Dortmund have enjoyed reminiscing about a particularly magical night. The victory against FC Malaga in the quarter-finals of the 2013 Champions League was a memorable drama, with a happy ending in stoppage time.
On Tuesday evening, Atlético Madrid was once again a Spanish team guest for the second leg in a round of the top eight clubs in the prestigious competition, and once again the audience was treated to a thriller that will be remembered for a long time. Dortmund were leading 2-0 and were close to elimination when the score was 2-2 before Niclas Füllkrug and the fabulous Marcel Sabitzer’s goals made a 4-2 win and a place in the semi-finals against Paris Saint-Germain possible.
The two teams weren’t playing at the highest Champions League level, but there was a lot going on on the pitch and the entertainment value was great. After just two minutes, Sabitzer had a spectacular chance when he got to the ball completely freely after a cross pass from Karim Adeyemi six meters in front of the goal, but hesitated for too long.
Intense game
The stadium was awake, but BVB’s defense was still asleep. Because two minutes later, the protection after his own corner was so disorganized that Alvaro Morata stormed freely towards the BVB goal, chipped the ball over goalkeeper Gregor Kobel and also next to the post.
An intense game followed that was characterized by inaccuracies and bad passes, with the Dortmund team working more energetically to score a goal and being rewarded with a bit of luck. Julian Brandt dared to shoot from a tight angle, which goalkeeper Jan Oblak let slip under his arm and into the goal (34′). On better days, the Pole would probably have prevented this goal, which was preceded by one of those rare through balls from Mats Hummels with the outside of his foot.
The failures of Sebastién Haller (ankle), who scored BVB’s goal in the 2-1 defeat in the first leg, and Donyell Malen (knee) were not initially noticeable. Adeyemi, Brandt and Jadon Sancho tried a lot and repeatedly appeared in good spaces in front of the Spaniards’ goal, from which the defensive players who moved up also benefited. Like Ian Maatsen, who added a second goal before half-time from his left side with a strong shot into the far corner (38th).
Dortmund worked energetically for the first goal from the start.AFP
Now there were many signs pointing to Dortmund’s surprisingly easy success; Atlético looked ailing and made a lot of mistakes. Coach Diego Simeone’s team has fundamental problems, especially away from home this season, and in Dortmund the force of the home crowd is known to be particularly powerful.
But it would have been naive to believe that this experienced European team would not be able to mobilize some special forces in such a big game. Simeone substituted three players during the break, after which the game turned around. Mats Hummels scored an own goal after a failed defensive attempt from a corner to make it 2-1 (49th). The Spaniards now played with a completely different energy, hardly made any mistakes and substitute Correa finally scored the 2-2 (64th) after an initially blocked shot in the second attempt.
But the Dortmunders fought back. Sabitzer, who had already made it 2-0, hit a precise cross to Füllkrug’s head in the 71st minute, making it 3-2. And three minutes later it was the Austrian himself who exploded the stadium with a strong finish to make it 4-2 (74′). He almost made it 5-2 with a spectacular long-range shot (87′), but BVB remained stable defensively and that was enough.
Edin Terzic’s ensemble is probably not really one of the four best teams on the continent, as BVB is only in fifth place in the Bundesliga. But this year things are just falling into place.
Good performances are complemented by the necessary luck and the right game progressions and have made something very special possible. Now we can even imagine reaching the final, which will take place at Wembley Stadium in London. Just like in 2013, when the Revierklub last reached the final of this most important competition for football clubs. Even a new edition of the all-German duel from back then is possible, because FC Bayern also still has the opportunity to advance to Wembley.