Guirassy gives victory to a gray Dortmund and points to Madrid

Borussia Dortmund suffered to beat St. Pauli (2-1) with a late header from the Guinean Serhou Guirassy, ​​​​in a rivalry that sometimes choked the European runners-up and in which it left some doubts before the challenge of the next Tuesday at the Santiago Bernabéu against Real Madrid.

With some changes forced by injuries, notably that of Karim Adeyemi, Nuri Sahin’s men took to the pitch with the aim of redeeming themselves from the negative version they showed in their last match before the break match at Unión Berlin.

From the start they trapped their mediocre opponents in their half of the field and with almost five minutes gone, a great pass into space by Julian Brandt, the home brand, left Guirassy alone in front by the Bosnian goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj, but he managed to win hand to hand.

The team led by Alexander Blessin was forced to stop the bus in front of the ‘borusser’ siege and try to surprise some counterattack. Boarding could provide the first scare after a quarter of an hour, when a ball stolen in the middle of the field by Guinean Guilavogui was followed by a deep pass from captain Irvine to Englishman Afolayan, who, while bringing his leg against Si Kobel, was neutralized by Emre Can.

The action informed the finalist of the last ‘Champions’. The possession was almost permanently his, coordinated by Brandt’s clairvoyance, but he failed in the most important thing: finishing plays.

For its part, the additions to the attack of the newly promoted team from the red light district of Hamburg are few, but, born mainly from losses in Dortmund’s own field, they create a sense of danger. A semi-miss shot from a corner from Eggestein’s back and a shot from Swede Eric Smith into the hands of the Swiss goalkeeper fired up Signal Iduna Park.

And when the half hour was up, the worry almost turned to panic. A free kick delivered from the left by Smith himself ended up being pushed into the back of the net by Guilavogui, but, fortunately for Sahin’s team, VAR intervened to declare it offside without the Guinean being marked.

After thinking about the weakness in the defense of those in yellow and black, St. Home lines to double the pressure on the ‘borusser’, who looked visibly insecure late in the first half.

But when what was chewed was the goal of the Hamburgers, what came was the goal of the locals. A cross from the right by Pascal Gross was superbly finished, with a perfect turn of the neck, by the Algerian Bensebaini to give the Borussia parish some peace of mind.

And before the break, the formula was almost repeated twice more, with headers from Brandt and Malen almost going wide.

From Dormund asking for a tie before halftime, the match was sealed. And, despite having possession, he achieved it with actions that were not the result of being the star of the game, but the most basic form of attacking football. “Just the same,” Sahin probably thought.

Going through the locker room didn’t change the course of the match. Dortmund monopolize the ball without knowing how to make the plays, while their rivals wait for the mistake to punish them.

A shot from the edge of the area by Brandt, another chance by Guirassy against Vasilj from a pass directly from the playmaker and Malen’s touch on the ball that Gittens crossed to the far post which he misdirected, could have extended the lead . . However, with too much forgiveness, they will pay dearly.

An impressive first-time shot from over 30 meters by Smith, St. Pauli, in the 78th minute, receiving a ball cleared by the Borussia defense, restored parity on the scoreboard and froze the passionate fans of Dortmund.

However, it would return to the temperature five minutes later, when the combination between Schlotterbeck and Gittens, who left his marker with a brilliant change of pace, met a cross that until then was unproductive Guirassy ended at will.

In stoppage time, the Hamburgers had a chance to make a final noise, but the Polish Dźwigała’s shot, after a free ball in a disturbance in the area, went wide of the goal. They even claimed a penalty for falling in the Scottish Banks area which was not signalled. Nothing moved in the light.

The victory allows the team from the Ruhr basin to rejoin, at least temporarily, the top of the Bundesliga, where they are fourth, one point behind Bayern Munich and Leipzig, pending what happens in Saturday’s matches, even if it does not solve its irregular image before the match on Tuesday, in the Champions League, against Real Madrid in the white coliseum.