Borussia Dortmund's Marco Reus in action. © Christian Charisius/dpa
Everything is ready, but Borussia Dortmund is not taking the last step towards the longed-for league title. Instead of coming from the Ruhr area, the champion of the 2022/23 season will once again come from Munich.
Dortmund - Deep mourning instead of title party: In a memorable Bundesliga final, Borussia Dortmund squandered a huge chance of winning their first championship in eleven years. BVB did not go beyond a 05-2 (2-0) draw against FSV Mainz 2 on Saturday and let perennial champions FC Bayern Munich pass them at the top of the Bundesliga table. In the sold-out Dortmund stadium with 81,365 spectators, coach Edin Terzic's team played in a masterful atmosphere.
Even a two-point lead at the top of the table before the last matchday was not enough to make the big triumph perfect and satisfy the huge title longing. With a late goal at 1. FC Köln, FCB secured the title.
After years of setbacks and sporting humiliations at the hands of the great rival from the south, everything was done in Dortmund. The original championship trophy was ready, the anticipation was huge. An entire region had been eagerly awaiting the grand finale of the season.
According to BVB, 300,000 tickets could have been sold for Signal Iduna Park. Hotels were also booked up quickly, prices skyrocketed, everyone wanted to be there. Early in the morning, fans queued up in front of the pubs in Dortmund's city centre. With a fan march to the stadium, supporters got in the mood for the game in bright sunshine.
On the pitch, however, BVB could not take advantage of the euphoria. On the contrary, the chance of the ninth championship title in the club's history did not seem to inspire the professionals, but to inhibit them. The start of the game was like a nightmare. First, Andreas Hanche-Olsen gave Mainz the lead with a header after a corner (15th minute), then Sébastien Haller failed with a penalty for a foul on 05 keeper Finn Dahmen (19th). Dortmund was in a state of shock, and Mainz, who played freely, took advantage of this ice-cold. Karim Onisiwo scored to make it 0-2 (24th).
Terzic rowed with his arms, drove his team forward, but all the creativity and goal threat of the last few weeks was suddenly gone. Even before the break, Karim Adeyemi had to be substituted due to injury. The 21-year-old was replaced by captain Marco Reus. It didn't get any better with the offensive veteran either. BVB's attempts to attack looked more like a headless run than an offensive game with a plan.
"Let's go, we'll do it," stadium announcer and ex-BVB player Norbert Dickel shouted to fans and team. However, BVB were lucky that Mainz did not even increase. Again and again, the guests took the unsorted and completely nervous Dortmund defense by surprise. Onisiwo's post shot (57th) was just one of several top-class Mainz scoring chances.
Terzic, dressed all in black, became more and more desperate on the sidelines. The 40-year-old made one offensive change after another. However, midfielder Jude Bellingham, who had recently been absent due to knee problems, remained on the bench. Raphael Guerreiro, who brought BVB closer to their title dream with his follow-up goal, provided hope. In injury time, Niklas Süle even scored to make it 2-2, but the draw was not enough. Dpa