Football

Bundesliga wrap: Dortmund stun Leipzig to move up to fourth

DORTMUND, GERMANY – OCTOBER 29: Youssoufa Moukoko of Borussia Dortmund runs with the ball during the DFL Media Day 2020 on October 29, 2020 in Dortmund, Germany. (Photo by Alexander Scheuber/Bundesliga/Bundesliga Collection via Getty Images)

Erling Braut Haaland netted twice on Saturday for Borussia Dortmund in the 3-1 victory over RasenBallsport Leipzig in the Bundesliga.
The Norwegian attacker had a hand in Dortmund’s opening goal at the Red Bull Arena as his cross from the right was delightfully flicked onto the path of Jadon Sancho with the England international sweeping home in glee from close range.
Leipzig were almost level on 67 minutes when Daniel Olmo’s powerful shot from a tight angle came off the inside of the post with the Dortmund goalkeeper, Roman Buerki rooted to his line.
Haaland then got a goal scoring contribution to extend Dortmund’s lead and it was a thing of beauty.
He began a sweeping team move, showing nimble footwork to bamboozle five Leipzig players before squaring to Sancho on the far side.
Sancho then exchanged passes with Emre Can and Raphael Guerreiro before producing an inch-perfect cross on the far post for Haaland to head home past the stranded Leipzig goalkeeper, Peter Gulacsi.
Haaland completed his brace in the 84th minute, latching onto a deft Reus through ball and rounding Gulacsi before slotting into an unguarded net.
Alexander Soerloth netted for Leipzig in the 89th minute but it represented nothing more than scant consolation as the damage had already been done by the Black and Yellow who moved into the Champions League places with 28 points from 15 matches.
The defeat meant that Leipzig missed a golden chance to go top, following Bayern’s shock 2-3 loss to Borussia Moenchengladbach on Friday.
Leipzig however stayed second with 31 points from 15 matches, two points adrift of the champions, Bayern.
Schalke are no longer the bottom club as they won their first game of the season, thrashing Hoffenheim 4-0 at the Veltins Arena with Matthew Hoppe netting a hattrick.
The day’s biggest winners were Freiburg as five different goal scorers, Ermedin Demirovic, Nicolas Hoefler, Roland Sallai, Philipp Lienhart and Lucas Hoeler getting off the mark in an emphatic win.
Bayer Leverkusen continued to lose valuable ground in the title race as they drew 1-1 with Werder Bremen at the BayArena.
Omer Toprak gave the visitors the lead in the 52nd minute but Patrik Schick gave Bayer a share of the spoils with the equalizer with 20 minutes remaining.
Union Berlin and VfL Wolfsburg played out a thrilling 2-2 draw with Wout Weghorst’s second half penalty rescuing a point for the visitors at Alte Foersterei.

Results
Friday
Borussia Moenchengladbach 3 – 2 Bayern Munich  

Saturday
Bayer Leverkusen 1 – 1 Werder Bremen
Freiburg 5 – 0 1. FC Köln  FT
Mainz 05 0 – 2 Eintracht Frankfurt  
Schalke 04 4 – 0 Hoffenheim  
Union Berlin 2 – 2 Wolfsburg  
RasenBallsport Leipzig 1 – 3 Borussia Dortmund

Sammy Wejinya

Recent Posts

Marathon magic in New York and Soweto

Competitive racing was the order of the day at the TCS New York City Marathon…

1 day ago

Mainz 05 Inspires Youth at Totalsport Safe-Hub in Alexandra

A coaching team from Bundesliga club 1.FSV Mainz 05 visited Totalsport Safe-Hub in Alexandra for…

6 days ago

Spotlight on African basketball talent and milestones as NBA’s 2024/25 season takes off

An NBA season packed with African talent and colourful courts is underway, with games available…

1 week ago

Tsitsikamma and Trail Running – setting the gold standard for inclusive conservation

Victor Mokoena and his team in the Tsitsikamma section of the Garden Route National Park…

2 weeks ago

Xaba and Tola re-write the record books at Sanlam’s Cape Town Marathon

Rising Ethiopian marathon star, Abdisa Tola, and South Africa’s running great, Glenrose ‘Supercharger’ Xaba, created…

3 weeks ago

Collin and Tayla shine on Day One of the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon weekend

Zimbabwean Collin Kanyimo and British athlete Catherine Williamson took the trail honours in the 44km…

3 weeks ago