BVB survive CL group of death with aplomb
Borussia Dortmund got the most difficult group in the Champions League - and can now look forward to the penultimate match day. After a very mature performance against Milan, who were short of substitutes, BVB booked their ticket for the round of 16.
With a match-ball mentality and a strong youngster in Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Borussia Dortmund booked their ticket to the round of 16 in the Champions League's "hammer group" ahead of time. BVB won 3:1 (1:1) at AC Milan in the concrete temple of San Siro after a great fight and can no longer be displaced from one of the top two places. This is also a great success in view of the weaknesses in the Bundesliga.
The best offensive player this time was the youngest. Winger Bynoe-Gittens took the penalty, which Marco Reus safely converted to make it 1:0 (9'). After Samuel Chukwueze equalized (37'), the 19-year-old led BVB to the milestone with his first Champions League goal (59') - before the final match against Paris St. Germain on 13 December. Karim Adeyemi (69) added a liberating goal after a personally difficult few weeks. Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel had saved a handball from Olivier Giroud early on (6th) in front of 75,600 roaring spectators.
Game begins with a moment of shock
BVB were still suffering from an infection in Milan. Niklas Süle was unavailable due to illness, but Nico Schlotterbeck, who was also ill, was able to play in central defense alongside the strong "anchor" Mats Hummels. Julian Brandt and Salih Özcan were also initially weakened and sat on the bench, as sporting director Sebastian Kehl reported shortly before kick-off. They came into the game later.
Dortmund had "pushed away" (Kehl) the talk of a league crisis by beating Borussia Mönchengladbach 4:2, and now they were to continue their successful European Cup campaign. 4500 BVB fans had spent the whole day at the cathedral or on the canal in the Navigli district getting in the mood.
But the game began with a shocking and highly curious moment. Schlotterbeck slid into a shot from the ever-dangerous Chukwueze, inadvertently blocking the ball with his arm. Giroud's penalty was grabbed by Kobel in his right corner - immediately afterwards, referee Istvan Kovacs (Romania) also pointed to the spot on the other side. Davide Calabria had fouled the lively Bynoe-Gittens, and Reus did not miss the chance amid the shrill whistling of the Curva Sud.
Star player Rafael Leao missing everywhere
Milan could do little without their star player Rafael Leao. With Emre Can and Marcel Sabitzer, BVB were in control and pushed forward: Bynoe-Gittens almost scored the second goal after a fine hook (19th). When right-back Ramy Bensebaini crashed into his goalkeeper Kobel (33), BVB coach Edin Terzic used the resulting break to give some tactical instructions: Nevertheless, his team conceded the equalizer after some sloppily played counter-attacks. Chukwueze had fooled Bensebaini and Bynoe-Gittens with one movement.
After the break, Milan increased their risk and pressure. Julian Ryerson latched onto a scissor-kick from former BVB star Christian Pulisic (49'), and the crosses kept sailing into the Dortmund penalty area. Defensively, however, Milan were weakened: German international Malick Thiaw grabbed the back of his left thigh after a running duel with Bynoe-Gittens and limped into the dressing room. Terzic, for his part, had to take Schlotterbeck off the pitch, with Can dropping into central defense. After the 3:1, Reus also had to be substituted with knee problems. Dortmund switched to managing the result, but there were still two aluminum goals: Luka Jovic headed against the post for Milan (85'), Niclas Füllkrug shot against the crossbar for BVB (88').
Source: www.ntv.de
