Fortuna Dusseldorf 2-1 Borussia Dortmund
Well, well, well. Who saw that coming?
Certainly not Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund and, presumably, neither did most SBOBET fans.
After a result which ripped apart the Bundesliga 2018 betting odds, suddenly the title race is well and firmly on.
Highlights of the game
There was no doubt this was a match which the leaders had to be wary of.
After all, Dusseldorf had already provided one of the Bundesliga 2018 news stories so far when they fought back from 3-1 down to draw 3-3 with reigning champions Bayern Munich last month—inspired by a Dodi Lukebakio hat-trick.
And with defender Kaan Ayhan picking the ideal time to net a double (his first goals of the campaign) against SC Freiburg at the weekend, Fortuna were suddenly out of the Bundesliga drop zone.
It was a much-needed morale booster for Friedhelm Funkel’s men, and they took that form into this encounter,
Lukebakio clearly has a linking for the big occasion, and the club’s top scorer was twisting and turning and causing problems for the visitors from virtually the first whistle.
Japanese winger Takashi Usami also sliced an effort wide as the hosts opened brightly, mainly on the counter-attack with Dortmund enjoying 65 percent of the possession.
Had a 16th-minute effort from captain Marco Reus—their inspiration so far this term—not been ruled out (Christian Pulisic had strayed into an offside position), the outcome may have been different.
But it was chalked off and within minutes Lukebakio was up and running.
It was fairly simple as goals go. Jacob Bruun Larsen lost possession, Kevin Stoger was able to thread the ball through the middle and the onrushing Lukebakio raced clear of his markers to slam the ball beyond Roman Burki for his seventh goal of the campaign.
If Takashi had shown more composure from close range six minutes before the break, the hosts would have been two goals to the good.
Eleven minutes after the restart, the lead was doubled—and it was a goal worthy of winning the game.
Jean Zimmer collected the ball outside the area and produced an unstoppable strike which left Burki with no chance.
It was quite a way to score your first Bundesliga goal, and it prompted visiting coach Lucien Favre into action.
He had left the league’s top scorer Paco Alcacer and top assist provider Jadon Sancho on the bench, perhaps with their next match in 72 hours’ time in mind, and they entered the fray on the hour.
The substitutions certainly provided Dortmund with more impetus, but Stoger came close to a third goal with a shot which was just inches past the post.
BVB needed something and they got it with nine minutes remaining.
Alcacer headed home his 12th goal of the league from Lukasz Piszczek’s cross, and Dortmund were back in business in Dusseldorf.
Dortmund, though, were not able to muster an equaliser and effectively finished with 10 men as Abdou Diallo picked up a knock after Favre had used all his substitutes.
With Borussia Monchengladbach defeating Nuremberg, Dortmund’s lead has been cut to six points ahead of the clash between the top two on Friday.
Game on in the title race? We shall see.
Key statistics
- This was only Dortmund’s second defeat here since 1986, a run of 15 matches. It’s also their first league defeat of the 2018/2019 Bundesliga, also a run of 15 games.
- This was a clash between the oldest coaches in the Bundesliga. Funkel turned 65 last week while Favre celebrated his 61st birthday in November.
- Dortmund have scored 14 goals in the last 15 minutes of matches this season.
- Alcacer has now set a new Bundesliga record by becoming the most prolific substitute in a single season, with already his 10th goal from the bench.
- The Spaniard also extended his lead at the top of the scoring charts. Alcacer now has 12 in total, two more than Reus, Luka Jovic, Robert Lewandowski and Timo Werner.
- Lukebakio has scored five of his seven goals this season against opponents playing in the Champions League (Dortmund, Munich and Hoffenheim).
Top of Form
What’s next?
It’s the battle of the Borussias next this weekend.
The top two meet at the Signal Iduna Park with Dortmund in the black and yellow corner and Monchengladbach in the green and white.
The 28-day long winter break then kicks in, with Dortmund not in action again until January 19 when they travel to RB Leipzig.
Likewise, Fortuna meet Hannover 96 for their last game of 2018 and then travel to FC Augsburg after the break.
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