BERLIN Sep 2: Niclas Fullkrug made his Borussia Dortmund debut on Friday but could not prevent the team squandering a two-goal lead as promoted Heidenheim fought back to draw 2-2 and claim its first point in the Bundesliga.
“Two-nil down after 14 minutes and then to take a point, Heidenheim in Dortmund, it’s mega,” visiting coach Frank Schmidt said.
Dortmund fans whistled at their team at fulltime, frustrated after it failed to make more of its chances in an error-strewn performance. It’s Dortmund’s second consecutive draw after it opened with a fortunate win over Cologne. “It’s hard to explain,” Dortmund coach Edin Terzić said. Germany striker Fullkrug, who joined from league rival Werder Bremen on Thursday, made his debut in the 78th minute when he went on for Sébastien Haller.
Haller had just conceded a penalty for a foul on Jan-Niklas Beste, but Dortmund was relieved after a VAR check ruled Beste was offside.
However, referee Tobias Reichel reviewed the decision again some minutes later and decided Haller controlled the ball, playing Beste onside before he fouled him. Reichel booked Haller, who was on the substitute’s bench at this stage, and awarded Heidenheim the penalty, which was duly scored by Tim Kleindienst in the 83rd.
Julian Brandt got Dortmund off to a good start in the seventh when he turned and fired in off the underside of the crossbar, and Emre Can made it 2-0 with a penalty in the 14th. But Dortmund failed to make more of its dominance and the visitors deservedly pulled one back through Eren Dinkçi in the 61st after a mistake from Dortmund’s Marius Wolf. Dinkçi looked up and let fly with a precise shot inside the right post.
Donyell Malen and Karim Adeyemi missed good chances before Felix Nmecha struck the crossbar for Dortmund.
Heidenheim, promoted for the first time last season, also had a goal ruled out for offside early in the second half.
Leverkusen crush Darmstadt
New signing Victor Boniface scored twice for the second consecutive week as Bayer Leverkusen blew Darmstadt 98 away 5-1 on Saturday to make it three wins out of three league games for a perfect Bundesliga start. Boniface opened his account with a superb solo run and chipped in his finish in the 21st minute after driving past three defenders.
Darmstadt levelled through Oscar Vilhelmsson’s close range header but Xabi Alonso’s team went back in front four minutes after the restart through Exequiel Palacios.Boniface then bagged his second goal of the afternoon, slipping into the box and flicking the ball past the keeper from a tight angle. Jonas Hofmann’s 20-metre drive made it 4-1, killing off any chances of a Darmstadt comeback before substitute Adam Hlozek slid in to add another and keep his team on a maximum nine points from three matches.
Other results
Serhou Guirassy and Chris Führich both scored twice as Stuttgart blew away Freiburg 5-0 despite losing key players in the summer transfer period. Guinea forward Guirassy already has five goals in three Bundesliga games so far.
Japan midfielder Takuma Asano scored twice for Bochum to draw at Augsburg 2-2, Werder Bremen eased to a 4-0 win over Mainz, and Hoffenheim defeated Wolfsburg 3-1. (AP)
