Zenit with “bus in front of the gate”: Sancho and Haaland redeem patient BVB

Wednesday 28 October 2020

Borussia Dortmund will not find means against a very compact Zenit St. Petersburg defensively in the 2nd day of the Champions League. Only a penalty redeemed BVB, Erling Haaland made the decision. Coach Lucien Favre remembers a bus.

Great effort, late reward: a penalty shot by Jadon Sancho brought Borussia Dortmund’s magicians back on track in the Champions League. The super talented Englishman broke the huge defensive concrete of the Russian champions Zenit St. Petersburg in the ghost match at home and paved the way for a 2-0 (0-0) victory. BVB’s failed start to Lazio Rom (1: 3) may have popped up as an annoying slip through the first success.

“We often had the ball and had to play fast,” said top scorer Haaland after the match on the pay TV channel Sky. “We knew the opportunity would come. In the end there are three important points. We had to be patient, it’s a very important victory.” Favre compared the defense of the visitors to “two buses in front of the goal, it was very, very difficult”. Sporting director Michael Zorc said: “We are satisfied because we more than deserved to win the match.” With another success on Wednesday at Club Bruges, BVB would be back on target. In the parallel match, Dortmund’s next opponent and Lazio Roma separated 1: 1.

In the first home game of the European Cup in the club’s history without spectators, Dortmund had very high ball possession values, but too few chances to score for a long time. Only Sancho scored the 1-0 redemption (78th), which put the BVB back in a good position in the match of the million class. Thorgan Hazard was fouled in the penalty area. Erling Haaland increased the interrupt time (90 + 1). In the crown pandemic, BVB loses several million euros at every home game: this is one of the reasons why it is a must to reach the last 16. “Moving forward is completely our goal and also our responsibility,” emphasized Zorc. Coach Lucien Favre dutifully warned against Zenit, but he also received a clear order from above. “St. Petersburg has excellent individual players, but I don’t care,” said Zorc. “We have to win.”

Hardly anyone goes into the depths

Favre instead relied on the return of his busy captain Marco Reus to the starting lineup in a tough match of patience, Mahmoud Dahoud had recommended himself for a mission with a good performance in the derby against Schalke 04 (3-0), but remained inconspicuous. Roman Bürki, Favre had made a secret, he was in goal and he is number one after all.

The BVB played the match in a spooky atmosphere and, like a handball, kept going left to right to separate the opposing chains – then the pass fell, which was rarely successful. Mats Hummels had his first good chance (15th).

Zenit let it happen calmly and after winning the ball often chose the long pass to the muscular striker Artjom Dzjuba. With that, Dortmund had far fewer problems than Rome with Lazio’s dangerous passes on the former BVB Ciro Immobile transfer flop.

Reus the most dangerous and offensive man

They rarely produced their own diplomas for it, but after half an hour, things slowly changed. Reus’s free-kick (27th) was saved by Zenit’s talented goalkeeper Mikhail Kerschakow and a sharp-angle shot by the captain (39th). Erling Haaland shot alone in front of Kerschakow near the door (42nd) – a rare sight.

It would have been much easier for BVB, the opponent would have to actively participate in the match. Instead, Dortmund’s test of patience went to the next round in the heaviest rain, with the difference that Zenit brought together half of the hosts from time to time.

When things got dangerous on the other hand, Reus was usually the initiator (61st), Sancho played weakly. It seemed that BVB wanted to take the ball into the goal, the consequence was missed. Zenit then helped. In the next two Champions League matches against Club Brugge (4 and 24 November), BVB is once again the favorite. However, the Belgians had surprisingly won in St. Petersburg (2: 1).