Despite playing poorly, Dortmund snatched victory from the jaws of defeat with three late goals to defeat Freiburg 3-1 at the Europa-Park Stadion. The visitors made it two wins from two in the Bundesliga this term.
With Borussia Dortmund desperate for a new striker following Erling Haaland’s transfer and Sébastien Haller’s health issues, head coach Edin Terzić moved during the week to sign Anthony Modeste from Cologne and had no hesitation in giving the 34-year-old his debut. Freiburg, meanwhile, included former Dortmund defender Matthias Ginter in the starting XI.
It was a tepid start to the game, with both sides in a cagey mood. Freiburg had some joy down the left flank as Vincenzo Grifo linked up well with Christian Günter, but not enough to truly trouble the Dortmund defence.
Despite the tentative initial exchanges, Grifo forced a good save from Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel – with Freiburg scoring 24 goals from set-pieces last season in the Bundesliga, the visitors needed to be fully concentrated in such situations.
Soon after, Michael Gregoritsch netted his second goal in as many games with a wonderfully-placed header to give Freiburg the lead ten minutes before HT.
With Dortmund now chasing the game, Terzić decided upon a change at the break, bringing on Marius Wolf for right-back Thomas Meunier, who struggled during the first period.
Freiburg, though, kept the pressure on the Borussia Dortmund defence on the few occasions where they countered, especially former player Nico Schlotterbeck. It was his mistake that very nearly led to the home side grabbing a second goal, however Kobel saved well from Roland Sallai’s shot.
Just as Christian Streich’s men looked to be closing in on the three points, Dortmund equalised out of nothing with 13 minutes to go. A speculative 25-yard shot from substitute Jamie Bynoe-Gittens looked harmless, but Freiburg goalkeeper Mark Flekken spectacularly spilt it into the net.
Inside the final ten minutes, Youssoufa Moukoko dispatched a low shot into the corner from close range to complete the comeback, and the visitors then confirmed all three points when Wolf fired home from inside the penalty area. A great result for Borussia Dortmund, but Streich will be bitterly disappointed to lose when his team looked in full control.
