DORTMUND (dpa-AFX) - Without much sparkle, Borussia Dortmund secured victory in the high-stakes West derby against Borussia Mönchengladbach, climbing at least temporarily to second place in the league table. On the club's 116th anniversary, coach Niko Kovac's side defeated the visitors from the Lower Rhine 2-0 (1-0), despite a lack of major highlights on the pitch.
The win is likely to ease the previously tense atmosphere at BVB just in time for Christmas. Dortmund had only won three of their previous nine competitive matches. However, critics of the team's style of play are unlikely to be silenced.
In front of 81,365 fans at their home football temple, Julian Brandt opened the scoring for the Ruhr club in the 10th minute. Maximilian Beier (90.+7) sealed the final score deep into stoppage time. Gladbach, meanwhile, posed little threat in attack. Coach Eugen Polanski's team will spend the winter break mid-table with 16 points.
For Dortmund, 32 points from 15 matches marks their best haul in seven years. However, their gap to league leaders Bayern Munich could grow back to nine points on Sunday.
Dortmund Stuns Gladbach With Early Goal
Kovac made five changes to his starting eleven compared to last Sunday's 1-1 draw in Freiburg, partly due to personnel issues. Among others, Brandt and Niklas Süle were brought into the lineup.
The move paid off quickly. The pair combined to give Dortmund an early lead. Süle crossed from the right to the far post, where Brandt finished with an impressive first-time shot to make it 1-0 with the team's first chance.
Tensions flared following a scuffle between Serhou Guirassy and Gladbach's Philipp Sander just before the goal. Not only Gladbach players complained about what they saw as a foul by the BVB striker. "That's clearly a foul," said former international Shkodran Mustafi on Sky. Referee Sven Jablonski saw things differently.
Dortmund failed to dazzle in the aftermath but managed to keep the action away from their own goal for long stretches, despite periods of surprising passivity. This was partly due to the guests' failure to capitalize on promising counterattacking opportunities.
Adeyemi Misses Big Chance
Gladbach showed plenty of effort but were far too imprecise in their play to trouble Kovac's team. Had Gladbach keeper Moritz Nicolas not made a brilliant save against Karim Adeyemi's huge chance, Dortmund would have been 2-0 up after half an hour. At the other end, Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel was alert to deny Rocco Reitz just before halftime.
Shortly after the break, BVB fans celebrated what seemed like the decisive second goal. However, Guirassy's headed effort was ruled out for offside against the 29-year-old.
Kobel Prevents Equalizer
The match became more heated. Referee Jablonski handed out yellow cards and was repeatedly drawn into discussions with the players. Adeyemi was visibly upset after being substituted and had to be calmed down by BVB sporting director Sebastian Kehl.
On the pitch, Gladbach pushed forward but continued to make the wrong decisions in the final third. Dortmund missed opportunities to calm their fans' nerves with a second goal. Substitute Wael Mohya came close to an equalizer out of nowhere, but the 16-year-old was denied by Kobel. In the end, Dortmund held onto their narrow lead until the final whistle./the/DP/he
