Borussia Dortmund faced a disappointing 1-3 defeat to 1. FSV Mainz 05 in the Bundesliga, marked by a red card for captain Emre Can in the 27th minute. Goals from Mainz’s Jae-sung Lee, Jonathan Burkardt, and Paul Nebel overshadowed a penalty equalizer from Dortmund’s Serhou Guirassy. Injuries continue to plague Dortmund, who are still seeking their first away win of the season, while Mainz celebrated their first home victory in six attempts.
Dortmund Faces Defeat Against Mainz in Bundesliga Showdown
In a disappointing turn of events for Borussia Dortmund, the team suffered a 1-3 loss to 1. FSV Mainz 05 on the 10th matchday of the Bundesliga. The turning point came when BVB captain Emre Can received a red card in the 27th minute for a serious foul, leaving his team to battle with a numerical disadvantage against a motivated Mainz side. Goals from Jae-sung Lee (36th minute), Jonathan Burkardt (45+3), and Paul Nebel (54th) secured the win for the hosts, while Serhou Guirassy found the net for Dortmund via a penalty in the 40th minute, leveling the score momentarily at 1-1.
Injury Woes Continue for Dortmund
This match marked yet another challenge for the injury-stricken Dortmund squad, who are still searching for their first away victory of the season. After recent wins against Leipzig and Graz had fans hopeful for a turnaround, the gap to league leaders Bayern Munich has now widened to ten points.
BVB coach Nuri Sahin acknowledged the difficulties of playing with ten men for over an hour against a strong opponent. “I can’t blame the boys too much because they have really been trying to give their all for weeks, almost always playing in the same formation,” he stated. Defender Nico Schlotterbeck also pointed out the effort put in by the team, noting, “The boys ran endlessly, we ended up playing with five or six young professionals at the end – that’s quite extreme.”
On the other side, Mainz celebrated their first home victory in six attempts, breaking a four-game winless streak. Forward Jonathan Burkardt praised the team’s performance, saying, “We showed a good team performance, stood very compact against the ball, and switched well.” He added that the red card was advantageous, but emphasized their strong performance throughout the match.
Before the match, Dortmund’s personnel challenges had slightly improved, with Julian Ryerson returning to the starting lineup for the suspended Ramy Bensebaini. Yan Couto was also back in the squad, but they still missed Waldemar Anton and Niklas Süle in central defense. Can had stepped in but unfortunately weakened his team with a rash tackle that led to his sending off.
Despite the setback, Dortmund looks forward to the upcoming international break, hoping to welcome back more players to strengthen the squad. Their next match is against SC Freiburg on November 23, while Mainz will face Kiel the following day.