Dortmund 2-2 Sevilla (agg: 5-4): Champions League – as it happened
09-Mar-2021 22:16:57 | The Guardian
Borussia Dortmund reached the quarter-finals thanks to two Erling Haaland goals and a remarkable VAR-inspired 10 minutes of madness
And that’s all from me. The Juventus v Porto tie however continues, now deep into extra time, here:
Related: Juventus v Porto: Champions League last-16 tie goes to extra time – live!
Related: Haaland double and VAR drama help Dortmund past Sevilla in feisty contest
Jonathan Liew has filed his match report:
A routine win for Dortmund, even if it didn’t quite feel like that at times. In truth, the real damage was done in Seville three weeks ago, and as Dortmund progressed to the quarter-finals for the first time in four years we learned little here that we did not already know. Dortmund are lethal on the counterattack and alarmingly brittle in defence. Injuries have left their squad looking a little uneven. And Erling Braut Haaland remains the closest thing to a guarantee in European football right now.
Youssef En-Nesyri’s penalty with 20 minutes remaining, followed by a superb headed goal deep into injury time, gave Dortmund a few nervous moments in the closing minutes. But by that point Haaland’s two goals – to add to his two in the first leg – had already decided a game that had seemed to be tilting back towards the visitors during a rampant first half-hour. Indeed, perhaps the real point of difference between these two sides was the contrast between Sevilla’s spasmodic goal threat – for all their dominance of possession – and Haaland, the 20-year-old game-breaker who when he is in the mood, as he was here, constitutes his own irresistible run of play.
Related: Haaland double and VAR drama help Dortmund past Sevilla in feisty contest
Here’s Bono’s penalty-save celebration, for which Haaland took full retribution in due course.
Context: Bono mocked Haaland after initially saving the penalty, before it was retaken. pic.twitter.com/kHnSctyXNW https://t.co/Xa8Og0zkqe
A game that took a while to get going but very much made it in the end, ignited by a remarkable disallowed goal/disallowed penalty save/converted penalty VAR-inspired nearly 10 minutes of second-half madness.
We're through! ✅ pic.twitter.com/SuCYyE5HNg
90_7 mins: It’s all over! Borussia Dortmund are in the Champions League quarter-finals!
90+7 mins: Remarkable scenes! Sevilla work the ball infield from the right, it ends up at the feet of Rakitic but there are too many people in his way, he doesn’t take the shot, and the chance goes!
90+6 mins: Sevilla need one more to take this to extra time. They couldn’t, could they?
A lovely cross from Rakitic on the right, and a fabulous header from En-Nesyri, who sends the ball arrowing into the top corner!
90+5 mins: Sevilla win a corner, and Sevilla bring Meunier on for Morey.
90+2 mins: Hummels leans into a header while Munir flicks up a boot in an attempt to win the same ball. I’m not sure there was any contact, but the defender goes down anyway and stays there for a while, holding his face in a very convincing impersonation of someone in pain.
90+1 mins: In fact we’ll get six. They start with Delaney challenging Munir for the ball on the edge of the home side’s penalty area, and getting both ball and Munir.
90 mins: Given the amount of time taken by the Dortmund penalty and everything related to it, there should be at least nine minutes of stoppage time.
88 mins: Dahoud’s 20-yarder bounces uncomfortably just in front of Bono, who shovels it away. And Borussia bring Zagadou on for Schulz.
86 mins: Rakitic is now on, replacing Fernando, who was left on the field to compete for an attacking corner, which was sent goalwards off the arm of Koundé and punched away again by Hitz.
86 mins: Two more substitutions for Sevilla, Rakitic and Munir coming on. Hang on, Rakitic has been pulled back off the pitch again! Suso is off, for now.
84 mins: Save! Haaland tees up Dahoud, who cuts onto his right foot and shoots low, back across goal, from 12 yards but Bono gets down well to push it back out again!
82 mins: The ball bounces around the Borussia penalty area for a while, without ever dropping to a white shirt.
81 mins: Bellingham tries an outrageous bicycle kick from Reus’s right-wing corner, which misses goal by a distance but was quite nice all the same.
79 mins: Another Sevilla substitution, as Oliver Torres comes on for Rodriguez.
77 mins: Diego Carlos is also booked, for a foul on Haaland a second or two before Fernando’s on Bellingham.
76 mins: Fernando is booked for a fairly wild scything challenge on Bellingham.
74 mins: Hitz needlessly flaps the ball behind, when it was going there anyway. From the corner De Jong heads over the bar.
71 mins: Rodriguez is booked for kicking the ball angrily into the advertising hoardings after conceding a free-kick.
70 mins: “Haaland can be a bit naughty,” writes thisisntipswich on Twitter, “but this time the goalkeeper taunted him before Haaland shouted at him.” This I didn’t see, but can well believe.
The best penalty of the night, by a considerable margin! En-Nesyri sends Hitz the wrong way before crashing his spot-kick into the roof of the net.
68 mins: Penalty to Sevilla! The Spaniards toss the ball into the area, and Hitz is on his way out to claim it when Can gently pushes De Jong in the back, and he throws himself to the floor. It was, when push comes to shove, which to be clear it did, a push, and thus a penalty.
67 mins: A vicious shot from Rodriguez, which Hitz has to turn over the bar.
67 mins: Passlack comes on for Hazard, while there has been another goal in tonight’s other game, where it’s now 3-3 on aggregate!
Related: Juventus v Porto: Champions League last-16 second leg – live!
65 mins: Haaland’s excellent ball in from the left curls just out of Bellingham’s reach, and Acuna turns it behind before Reus can tuck it in at the far post.
64 mins: Gomez fires in a low, left-footed 25-yarder that Hitz turns round the post.
63 mins: Hazard, to Haaland, to Reus, who is pushed away from goal by Acuna, who has shadowed his run diligently. The ball goes out of play, and there’s a bit of gentle afters involving Acuna, who seems absolutely furious about life.
60 mins: A double change for the Spaniards, who bring on Gomez for Jordan, and De Jong for Ocampos.
59 mins: A lovely finish in the other game, where Juventus are back in it.
Juventus are back in it!
Federico Chiesa with a wonderfully taken finish, that ends up going right into the top corner
The home side need another goal to force extra-time pic.twitter.com/UZQdLUSivl
57 mins: So that should be eight minutes or so of VAR-based stoppages to add on at the end. Does play that was played between an incident happening and action being taken as a result of that incident happening count as play, or as stoppage?
Erling Haaland is the quickest player in #UCL history to reach 20 career goals, doing so on his 14th appearance in the competition and breaking the previous record by 10 games pic.twitter.com/Ks2IQmLhWf
55 mins: Haaland is booked for being mean, and a Sevilla player (identity TBC) is booked for being mean to him because he was mean.
Haaland goes the same way, the keeper goes the same way, but this time the ball squirms in! Haaland runs up to roar at the keeper in celebration, which is a bit mean, and several Sevilla players chase after him angrily.
53 mins: Remarkable scenes here. VAR intervenes again, having spotted Bono a foot off his line wen the penalty was taken!
52 mins: It’s not a great penalty, and the keeper guesses right, dives left, pushes the ball out, and gets up in time to save Haaland’s follow-up!
51 mins: The referee decides that it was a foul, so the goal doesn’t count. But he also decides that Koundé had tugged Haaland’s shirt as a cross came into the box, a minute or so before the “goal”, so Haaland has not scored his second, but might now score his second!
50 mins: Cuneyt Cakir has gone to take a look at some replays.
49 mins: VAR is having a look at this. Fernando was bundled to ground in the build-up to goal, but the question is whether the contact was fair, or foul.
This is remarkable strikership from Haaland, who gets a shot past Bono from a ludicrous angle!
46 mins: Haaland is played down the left, and his cross runs through to Hazard, who has plenty of time to line up his shot but sends it well wide!
46 mins: Peeeeep! No changes at the interval, and play is back on.
18 - @SevillaFC_ENG have attempted 18 open crosses at the half time vs Dortmund, more than vs any other Top-Flight opponent in a single away game in the first half in all comps since at least 2013/14, only one less than in the entire first leg game (19). Bombing#BVBSFC#UCL pic.twitter.com/VwUwKoqNLI
Overall, the match has been disappointing in a way that was all but inevitable. The first was a little bit too fun, and expectations were unfairly inflated, particularly with one side having no need to do any attacking. “Uncharacteristic of Bono to give a rival band the Edge,” writes Daniel McKillop. U2 puns are all but inevitable when he’s in nets, but that’s probably as good as you could hope to get.
45+3 mins: Sevilla have played pretty well, but for the abysmally over-relaxed play that preceded the goal, but at kick-off they needed to score twice and have created little and not scored or really scared Hitz at all. Borussia didn’t need to score, barely tried to score but scored anyway. Sevilla need three in the second half.
45+2 mins: Ocampos has a shot from just outside the area, which hits a defender. Sevilla appeal for a handball and a penalty, but don’t get one.
45+1 mins: There will be two minutes of stoppage time, give or take.
43 mins: The ball falls to Fernando, 20 yards out. The Brazilian has scored four times this season but is not exactly renowned for his shooting, and does nothing to improve his reputation here.
42 mins: Koundé gives the ball away to Haaland, who can’t quite work it through to Reus.
40 mins: Acuna is booked for being a bit mean to Jude Bellingham, pushing the ball into his chest after the ball goes out of play, and he will miss Sevilla’s next game in this season’s Champions League, in the very unlikely event that they have one.
37 mins: Of all ways for Sevilla to concede, that has got to hurt the most. That was just so, so poor. Dortmund lead 4-2 on aggregate, and can relax and perhaps also attack a bit more. Sevilla meanwhile are in a deep hole.
Haaland scores. We need three for extra time.@BlackYellow 1-0 #SevillaFC (35')#BVBSEV | #UCL
Sevilla give a goal away! Such casual passing out from the back, starting with Bono and continuing forward where Delaney and Suso leave it for each other and Delaney barrels in and sends it squirting away from them both. Dahoud plays it forward to Reus, who draws the keeper and tucks it inside to Haaland, who taps in!
35 mins: Navas’s cross is knocked down to Ocampos, but his volley is blocked.
33 mins: There have not been any shots for a while, Dortmund keeping Sevilla away from their area, and not getting very near their opponents’. There have been only three shots so far, each team having one on target (both in the first four minutes).
29 mins: Diego Carlos is on the ground and feeling his right hamstring. Sevilla’s physios come on and rub some cream into it.
28 mins: Before Schulz overhits a pass to Delaney, and Sevilla have a goal kick.
27 mins: Borussia spend some time with the ball in the Sevilla half.
23 mins: Sevilla are the brighter team still, Dortmund continuing to defend very deep and in great numbers. They are now leaving Haaland up front, though.
21 mins: A card in this game, Mateu Morey arriving late to his challenge with Oscar Rodriguez, and there’s been a goal in tonight’s other Champions League fixture - and it’s gone to the away team in Turin, where Porto lead 1-0 (and 3-1 on aggregate).
Related: Juventus v Porto: Champions League last-16 second leg – live!
18 mins: An excellent run from Ocampos, who comes infield from the left, past a couple of yellow shirts and finally lays off to Suso, who shoots wide of goal.
16 mins: Hazard lets the ball run out of play on the right, but then it refuses to, running right along the touchline for about 30 metres before coming to a halt, and he and Acuna chase after it, tussle for a while, and finally it does go out, for a Sevilla throw.
13 mins: A long ball from defence runs through to Hazard after Diego Carlos falls over, but instead of running towards goal he hits an early pass to his left, very much the wrong decision, and the attack breaks down.
11 mins: All 11 Dortmund players are within 20 yards of their own goalline, making it extremely difficult for them to clear the ball without it coming straight back again. Eventually they win a free-kick, and a chance to move forward.
10 mins: Haaland is in the right place in the penalty area once again, though this time it’s at his own end, to stop a cross reaching Diego Carlos.
9 mins: Certainly an encouraging opening from the away team, who are dominating territorially, and have already made one chance and been presented with another.
7 mins: Oooof! A cross from the right drops to Oscar Rodriguez, 10 yards from goal, who swings his right boot and misses the ball completely!
4 mins: Already a shot at both ends, Dahoud volleying an effort from 20 yards or so that Bono saves easily.
3 mins: Hitz so nearly passes the ball straight to En-Nesyri but it makes it through to Can. He, though, does give it away, to Ocampos, who cuts infield and sends in a decent shot that Hitz punches away.
2 mins: I’m not sure anyone since the kick-off has so far played a pass that didn’t look at least slightly panicked.
1 min: Peeeeeep! Sevilla get the ball rolling!
Right then. The players are in the tunnel, with kick-off five earth minutes away.
If you’ve ever wondered what kind of view the bottom of the corner flag gets of a corner kick, wonder no more.
The names are in, and here they are:
Borussia Dortmund: Hitz, Morey, Can, Hummels, Schulz, Dahoud, Delaney, Bellingham, Hazard, Haaland, Reus. Subs: Burki, Zagadou, Moukoko, Brandt, Reinier, Meunier, Piszczek, Tigges, Passlack, Knauff, Raschl, Drljaca.
Sevilla: Bounou, Jesus Navas, Kounde, Diego Carlos, Acuna, Jordan, Fernando, Rodriguez, Suso, En-Nesyri, Ocampos. Subs: Romero, Vaclik, Sergi Gomez, Rekik, Gudelj, de Jong, Rakitic, Munir, Escudero, Torres, Gomez, Pastor.
Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (Turkey).
BVB STARTING XI VS. SEVILLA pic.twitter.com/dxCm5B096r
The team to take on @BlackYellow #UCL #WeareSevilla #NeverSurrender pic.twitter.com/hqAMjaWk2W
The first leg of this tie finished 2-3. There were early goals, late goals and in-between goals. There were deflected goals, close-range goals, volleyed goals and long-range wondergoals. There were 22 shots, one every four minutes or so and precisely one more shot than there were fouls. Ninety more minutes of that? Yes please .
Erling Haaland scored two and now has 18 career goals in the Champions League having played just 13 games, a bewilderingly improbable record that cannot possibly continue, not that he seems to be particularly troubled by anything so limiting as impossibility. He has been pronounced fit to play tonight after a little injury trouble, but Jadon Sancho and Giovanni Reyna are among Dortmund’s absentees. Sevilla have fewer injury issues, though may or may not be able to call on their first-choice goalkeeper, Bono.
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