The only goalless match (so far) in the third Bundesliga round needs no description – the result speaks for itself. We didn’t see many chances, only one massive for Werder, while Borussia’s display was pale. Sahin’s crew finished the game with ten men after Nico Schlotterbeck was sent off in the 73rd minute, and after that moment, Dortmund could already say goodbye to three points – 0-0.With slight problems, Dortmund managed to defeat Eintracht Frankfurt last weekend 2-0, thanks to Jamie Bynoe-Gittens’ brace, while Werder drew 2-2 in Augsburg. Borussia certainly wanted to establish themselves as title contenders, and the win against Werder, which usually finished in the lower part of the table, was a necessity. On the other hand, even a draw for the team from Bremen would have represented an excellent result.It didn’t work out: AFCON champion moves to SpainDortmund boss Nuri Sahin decided to give Bynoe-Gittens a chance from the first minute instead of Donyell Malen, who started against Eintracht. Additionally, the reinforcement from Hoffenheim Maximilian Beier was the only forward, replacing Karim Adeyemi. On the other hand, the scorer for Werder from the previous round, Justin Njinmah, got the opportunity in the starting 11, while the defender Milos Veljkovic was left out of the squad since he is allegedly close to moving to La Liga side Osasuna.The home team threatened first after 11 minutes. Gregor Kobel saved Njinmah’s close-range strike, deflecting it straight to Jens Stage, but the Dane’s attempt went wide of the post, although he was in a great position. Surprisingly, Werder had a possession advantage in the first half an hour. It seemed that Sahin still had not enough time to implement his ideas. The first half, actually, was rather similar to that Borussia played against Eintracht last Saturday, when they couldn’t break the deadlock until the last twenty minutes of the game.Protest in Dortmund: ‘You took 20 bloody million!’Dortmund had the first chance in the 33rd minute after Pascal Gross’ free kick when his teammates could use the confusion in Werder’s box. That attack continued, and the ball came to the German international Waldemar Anton, whose strike from the edge of the area went wide. That was the last notable moment in the first half in which we saw two chances (one on each side), only one attempt on target, and three yellow cards – Anton and Niklas Sule (Dortmund) and Mitchell Weiser (Werder).Both teams began the second 45 minutes in the same lineups and opened it with another booking, this time to Dortmund’s Julian Ryerson. Once more, Werder started better, putting a lot of pressure on Borussia’s defensive line, but without a proper chance to find the net behind Kobel’s back. In the 57th minute, Sahin replaced Sule and Bynoe-Gittens with Ramy Bensebaini and Adeyemi, and the latter had a chance only two minutes later, unleashing an effort from the edge of the box, but Werder’s goalie Michael Zetterer deflected the ball superbly.The second yellow for Nico Schlotterbeck in the game Werder Bremen – Dortmund in Bundesliga. #SVWBVB #Bundesliga pic.twitter.com/d9UXX4OiJI— That Red Card Football Channel (@FootballRedCard) August 31, 2024 Seventeen minutes before the end, Dortmund were left with a man down! Nico Schlotterbeck got sent off after a second booking (he got the first one 20 minutes earlier)! At that point, Sahin probably thought only of salvaging the draw and resisting Werder’s imminent pressure. In the end, the home team couldn’t outsmart Dortmund’s dense defence and the result remained the one from the beginning – 0-0.This result is undoubtedly a huge blow for Borussia’s title-winning ambitions and Sahin’s team will have to use the international break to improve their form. On the other hand, Werder could even take all three points after Schlotterbeck’s red card, but will surely be satisfied with a draw.BUNDESLIGA – MATCHDAY 2FridayUnion Berlin – St.Pauli 1-0 (1-0)/Hollerbach 34/SaturdayStuttgart – Mainz 3-3 (2-1)/Millot 8, Leweling 15, Rieder 88 – Amiri 42 pen, Burkardt 62, Leitsch 90+4/Werder – Dortmund 0-0Holstein Kiel – Wolfsburg 0-2 (0-2)/Arnold 27, Bornauw 30/Eintr.Frankfurt – Hoffenheim 3-1 (2-0)/Ekitike 24, Larsson 33, Marmoush 56 – Kramaric 54/Bochum – M’ gladbach 0-2 (0-0)/Kleindienst 67, Honorat 78/19:30: (1.80) Leverkusen (3.70) RB Leipzig (4.40)Sunday16:30: (2.45) Heidenheim (3.40) Augsburg (2.85)18:30: (1.20) Bayern (7.25) Freiburg (12.0)***odds are subject to change***
