Bundesliga: Borussia Dortmund Climb to Table Top With Win Over RB Leipzig

First-half targets from Marco Reus and Emre Can despatched Borussia Dortmund three factors clear on the high of the Bundesliga on Friday with a 2-1 residence win over title rivals RB Leipzig.

Dortmund captain Reus received and transformed a penalty after 21 minutes and Can doubled the lead with 5 first-half minutes remaining with a long-distance shot from exterior the field.

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The win was Dortmund’s tenth from 10 matches in 2023 and switched the strain again to earlier leaders Bayern Munich, who journey to Stuttgart on Saturday.

After the match, Reus instructed DAZN “we had to maintain on on the finish” but said “our goal was to steal the lead on top of the table back and we did it”.

A “very happy” Dortmund coach Edin Terzic said his side “played a really good game in the first half and in the second half defended passionately”.

“The second half was after all irritating however you possibly can see that it’s probably not straightforward to rating targets towards us,” he said.

“Today the two most in-form teams in the Bundesliga played each other.”

Leipzig boss Marco Rose stated the end result “was tough to settle for” and credited Dortmund’s “efficiency”.

“We’ve obtained to do extra to carry out at this stage constantly, however I feel we additionally confirmed what we’re able to,” he added.

Both sides were hit by late withdrawals in the lead-up to the game, with Leipzig striker Timo Werner forced to the bench through injury and Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel injured in the warm-up.

Julian Brandt had the ball within the internet for Dortmund after quarter-hour when he managed an excellent lofted go from Jude Bellingham and put the ball previous RB ‘keeper Janis Blaswich.

However, a VAR review showed the Germany midfielder handled the ball before unleashing his shot.

Reus on the spot

Reus was fouled in the box just five minutes later and won the spot-kick despite not going to ground.

He dispatched the ball to the left of Blaswich’s outstretched hand to put Dortmund 1-0 in entrance.

Marcel Halstenberg had a chance to equalise after 35 minutes when he connected with an expert cross from Sweden midfielder Emil Forsberg, but the Germany defender blasted over.

Former Liverpool midfielder Can doubled Dortmund’s advantage before the break, driving a long-range shot through a crowded penalty box and into the goal.

Leipzig, who had lost only one of their last 22 games heading into Friday’s clash, found their fluency in the second half, with Portugal striker Andre Silva going close a minute after the break.

Dortmund goalkeeper Alexander Meyer denied Silva again midway through the second half, but Leipzig continued to push and cut the deficit in the 74th minute through Forsberg.

Germany wingback David Raum, who came off the bench in the 60th minute, cut a sliding pass through Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck’s legs, allowing a diving Forsberg to pounce.

Rose, who sat in the Dortmund dugout in the same fixture last season, brought on Werner in search of an equaliser.

The former Chelsea striker almost snatched a point for the visitors with an injury-time shot but his Germany team-mate Schlotterbeck chested it away from danger.

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