Mats Hummels played a repentant sinner – and Edin Terzic’s confession of his leading player’s guilt was just right. The much-criticised Borussia Dortmund coach needed no explanation at all for his early red card after losing a crucial match against RB Leipzig.
On the contrary, Terzic gratefully accepted the international player’s pass. “That was the pivotal scene that turned everything upside down. After the red card, it was a different game,” said the 41-year-old after the bitter 2:3 (1:1) match with the Saxons. The gap to the all-important Champions League place has increased to four points, down from the current 25 points after 14 matchdays that BVB last achieved six years ago.
But BVB were spared a tiresome debate about mentality and another debate about being too defensive after Hummels’ early showdown with Lois Openda. “We fought no matter what and we had good energy on the field,” Terzic said. The coach did not receive any objections.
“This is completely unnecessary”
Moreover, Hummels took all the blame upon himself. “The defeat is on my conscience. “I should never go into a tackle and leave the boys on the pitch for 80 minutes with one less player,” the national team player lamented on social media. For Terzic, the veteran was not “the only person responsible”, but the coach clearly criticized the 2014 world champion.
“At this stage of the game there is absolutely no need to take that much risk,” Terzic said. Hummels knows “it was the wrong decision.” Egged on by the fans, BVB also sensed an advantage at one point when they found themselves shorthanded against an uncertain and unwisely playing Leipzig team. As a result, goals from Niklas Süle (45+6.) and Niklas Füllkrug (90+3.) did not prevent the second home defeat of the season.
“We can’t buy anything in this match,” said goalkeeper Gregor Kobel humbly after conceding goals from Rami Bensebaini (32nd minute, own goal), Christoph Baumgartner (54th) and Yussuf Poulsen (90+1). After just one win and five points from their last six league games, BVB are facing an unpleasant Christmas.
Victories over Augsburg and Mainz 05 are now mandatory. “We have to win the next games,” demanded national team player Julian Brandt on Sky. “If you don’t score points, it won’t be any easier,” Terzic also admitted. It was a “tough phase” and now it was a matter of “getting the boys to follow me.” And that’s what they did today.”
Terzic is not worried about competing in the premier class again. “We have discussed this topic very often in recent years. And when we couldn’t get into the Champions League?” he asked on ZDF. Answer: The last time Borussia did not qualify for the premier class was in the 2014/15 season.
Despite winning the pursuit match in Dortmund, Leipzig coach Marco Rose was not in a celebratory mood. “I am very pleased with the result and the victory. From the first minute we were not so tenacious and lively. “It’s a lucky win defensively, to be honest,” Rose said after the 3-2 win, despite a big majority.
Rose took responsibility for the Saxons’ average performance. “The energy is gone. I’ll take this into account. We exceeded the target in some training sessions during this long week,” said the former BVB coach, adding: “I’m happy with the three points, but I’m annoyed by the management of the training sessions.”
Success hung in the balance, especially in the closing stages, although Hummels was shown a red card early on. “Losing control of the game because of one more person is not a good thing,” Rose criticized. With their first away league win since October 21, RB, who are fourth in the table, are now four points clear of BVB. “We are where we see ourselves now,” Rose said.
Source: Frantfurter Allgemeine
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