Shaky win and Bellingham trouble: BVB must face Alonso's Real
Atlanta. Borussia Dortmund trembled its way into a highlight-reel clash with Real Madrid in the round of 16 of the Club World Cup. With a 2-1 (2-0) win over CF Monterrey of Mexico, BVB is $13.125 million richer and will face Xabi Alonso's Real Madrid in the quarterfinals on Sunday night (4 a.m.) in East Rutherford, Germany.
However, BVB will be missing their new top star Jobe Bellingham and his brotherly duel with former Dortmund player Jude Bellingham. The 19-year-old Englishman received a completely unnecessary yellow card early on – his second of the current tournament.
Missing in the duel with Real Madrid and his brother Jude: Jobe Bellingham.
Source: Sven Hoppe/dpa
A brace from Serhou Guirassy (14th minute/24th) in Dortmund's strong first half was enough to secure the win for BVB, who faltered even more in the second. German Berterame (48th) scored the equalizer for Monterrey, who were repeatedly denied by the strong BVB goalkeeper Gregor Kobel until the end.
First, BVB played their best game to date in the USA. For the first time, Dortmund were allowed to play in an evening game at 9 p.m. local time on Tuesday, and they also played in the temperate Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, rather than in the stifling heat like they had twice before in Cincinnati.
In addition, many Mexican fans created a World Cup atmosphere in the stands, but quickly quieted down somewhat. Against the team of Spanish defender legend Sergio Ramos (39), Dortmund played with an intensity not previously shown in the USA and the necessary tackling that BVB had actually expected from Monterrey.
With their fast attacking play, Karim Adeyemi and Guirassy, in particular, repeatedly posed problems for the opposing defense. Within ten minutes, Adeyemi twice passed the ball to the BVB goal scorer, who consistently finished.
What looked like a clear win for BVB at halftime quickly became tense again after the break, as the Dortmund defense made several mistakes. Argentina-born Mexican international striker Berterame took advantage of this to head home the equalizer, thus bringing the Mexican crowd back to life.
The Bundesliga team was suddenly on the defensive, made several mistakes, and lost the confidence they had shown in the first half. Nevertheless, it was enough for a narrow victory in the end.
RND/dpa
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