- Dortmund drew 3-3 with St. Pauli after leading 3-1
- BVB conceded two goals in the final four minutes
- Team criticised for deliberately kicking the ball out of play
After leading 3-1, Dortmund conceded in the 86th minute to make it 3-2. From the resulting kick-off, striker Serhou Guirassy immediately kicked the ball out of play deep inside the St. Pauli half, surrendering possession at a critical moment. The move backfired as St. Pauli regained momentum and scored an 89th-minute equaliser through Eric Smith to complete their comeback.
The decision to deliberately give the ball away is being viewed as a sign of mental fragility and nervousness, contributing directly to Dortmund dropping two points. For a team with title aspirations, the late collapse and the questionable game management have raised early concerns about their ability to handle pressure under manager Niko Kovac, especially after the Jobe Bellingham incident, undermining an otherwise strong offensive performance that saw goals from Guirassy, Waldemar Anton and Julian Brandt.
The tactic of kicking off by sending the ball deep into the opposition’s half is not entirely new and has been used by top clubs, including Paris Saint-Germain. However, its primary purpose is to facilitate an aggressive high press to win the ball back near the opponent’s goal, a secondary action which Dortmund failed to implement.
Dietmar Hamann slammed the tactic, said on Sky: “You just conceded the 2-3 and there are still seven minutes to play. Psychology plays a very big role. As a big BVB, you go there and concede the 2-3 and areoutnumbered. It’s completely normal to come under pressure in the final minutes. If I then kick the ball out of play and tell the opponent: ‘I surrender and we’ll defend the last few minutes,’ then you give the opponent the feeling: ‘They’re afraid of us and we’ll score another goal.”
Hamann continued: “From a psychological point of view, it was an absolute disaster because you showed the St. Pauli players and the fans that you were only in defence mode. I think that gave the St. Pauli fans the feeling that there was still something to be done.”
Dortmund’s sporting director Lars Ricken, however, defended the kick-off tactic. “It worked wonderfully against Essen; we had a chance to score after just 10 seconds,” he said, adding about the weekend incident: “I was actually surprised, because we didn’t follow up quickly to press. Instead, they simply took the ball quickly, threw it in, and were then able to launch their next attack.”
The pressure is now on for Dortmund to deliver a resilient and composed performance in their next Bundesliga fixture against Union Berlin. Kovac and his squad must provide an immediate response to prove their mentality is strong enough to sustain a title challenge and put this opening-day disappointment behind them.
