News Focus
- Borussia Dortmund beat Werder Bremen 2-0 in their final Bundesliga fixture of the season
- Serhou Guirassy opened the scoring in the second half with a powerful header
- Yan Couto added a second goal deep into injury time to secure the three points
- The victory lifts BVB to 73 points, their highest league total since the 2018/19 season
- Several players including Julian Brandt and Niklas Süle bid farewell to the club
Borussia Dortmund wrapped up their Bundesliga season with a solid victory on the road. They defeated Werder Bremen 2-0 at the Weser-Stadion on Saturday. The win pushes their final points tally to 73. This marks their best return in the league since 2019.
Niko Kovač sent out a full-strength side despite the match having no bearing on their final position. The visitors started brightly and created early chances. Serhou Guirassy and Samuele Inácio both forced fine saves from Mio Backhaus inside the opening seven minutes. The Bremen goalkeeper denied the pair three times in quick succession.
Julian Ryerson later delivered a dangerous cross towards Guirassy. The striker connected with his head but directed the ball wide of the post. Bremen thought they had taken the lead against the run of play after half an hour. Amos Pieper finished from Cameron Puertas’ free-kick, yet the assistant referee’s flag was up for offside.
The hosts grew into the contest as the first half progressed. Former Dortmund forward Justin Njinmah used his pace to trouble the BVB defence. He outran Nico Schlotterbeck before firing a volley off target. Neither side could find the net before the interval.
The second period followed a similar pattern. Dortmund dominated possession and carved out openings. Inácio played a clever through ball to Guirassy, who was again thwarted by Backhaus. A corner from Daniel Svensson also found the Guinean striker, but he could not beat the inspired keeper.
The breakthrough finally arrived in the 59th minute. Ryerson whipped in a cross from the right flank. Guirassy used his strength to get in front of Marco Friedl. He powered a header into the net from close range to give Dortmund the lead.
Both teams made changes as the match wore on. Carney Chukwuemeka came on for the visitors. Julian Brandt made his final appearance for the club before his summer departure. Bremen introduced Samuel Mbangula and Patrice Covic from the bench.
The home side believed they had equalised late in the game. Karim Coulibaly turned the ball home from close range after a scramble. However, a VAR review showed he was narrowly offside. The goal was ruled out. Mbangula then forced Gregor Kobel into a smart stop at his near post.
Dortmund confirmed the result in stoppage time. Karim Adeyemi broke forward and squared the ball to Yan Couto. The defender calmly slotted home to make it 2-0. The final whistle brought emotional scenes as several players said goodbye. Leo Bittencourt departed Bremen, while Brandt, Niklas Süle and Salih Özcan ended their time with Borussia Dortmund.