Borussia Dortmund extended their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to 13 points on Friday, blitzing second-placed Bayer Leverkusen with three goals in just six minutes for an impressive 3-1 away win.
Having already begun the year with a 10-point lead, Dortmund hit second-half goals in quick succession from teenager Mario Goetze and two from 22-year-old Kevin Grosskreutz to seal the win.
With such a commanding cushion, Dortmund can start dreaming of their first German title since 2002.
PHOTO: REUTERS
“I have been going to watch Dortmund since 1994 and I know what it’s like to win the league title as a fan on the terraces,” Grosskreutz said. “I have been dreaming of this since I was a little boy and I’d love to hold the cup in my hands.”
Although Leverkusen rallied in the game’s final 15 minutes, Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp — who has been tipped as a future manager of English giants Liverpool — was clearly delighted with his side’s convincing away win.
“The plan was to continue to play our own style of football, which we did,” Klopp said. “The first goal settled the nerves and we weren’t comfortable until we got the third goal.”
Leverkusen goalkeeper Rene Adler had a busy evening between the posts.
Grosskreutz, who is tipped as a future Germany star, opened the scoring when he latched on to a handball by Leverkusen defender Daniel Schwaab and tapped his shot past Adler on 49 minutes.
Just four minutes later, the attacking midfielder curled his shot around Adler after Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller’s goal-kick was headed on by striker Robert Lewandowski for Grosskreutz to blast home.
Leverkusen’s misery was compounded when Grosskreutz turned provider as Goetze beat Adler for the third time from close-range on 55 minutes.
Only a superb save from Adler stopped it from being 4-0 when substitute Lucas Barrios fired in a shot from the left flank from long-range that needed a full-stretch save from the Germany national goalkeeper shortly afterwards.
With 10 minutes remaining, Leverkusen striker Steffan Kiessling pulled a goal back for the hosts when he latched on to a cross from Renato Augusto to stab the ball into the net and injure himself in a collision with the goalpost in the process. The result saw Leverkusen drop down to third place.
ADVANTAGE ATLETICO: Well off the pace in La Liga, the Copa del Rey represents Atletico Madrid’s best chance of silverware this season Atletico Madrid on Thursday hammered Copa del Rey holders Barcelona 4-0 in the first leg of their semi-final. After an Eric Garcia own-goal sent Diego Simeone’s side ahead early on, Antoine Griezmann, Ademola Lookman and Julian Alvarez struck to give Atletico a landslide lead by halftime. Barca defender Garcia was sent off in the final stages, with Atletico maintaining their significant advantage on the record 32-time winners, which they take into the second leg at the Camp Nou on March 3. Both sides missed good chances in the second half, with Barca’s Pau Cubarsi having a goal disallowed before Garcia was sent off
Dasun Shanaka hammered the fastest half-century by a Sri Lankan in T20Is as the cohosts thrashed Oman by 105 runs at the World Cup yesterday in Pallekele, Sri Lanka, for their second win in Group B. The 2014 champions piled up 225-5, the highest total of the tournament, before restricting an outclassed Oman to 120-9. The 43-year-old Mohammad Nadeem waged a lone battle for Oman, compiling an unbeaten 53 to become the oldest player to score a 50 in T20 World Cups. Having promoted himself up the order and under pressure to deliver, Sri Lanka skipper Shanaka smashed a 19-ball half-century. It has been
Kawhi Leonard on Sunday scored 41 points, grabbed eight rebounds and made four steals to lead the Los Angeles Clippers in a lopsided 115-96 victory at Minnesota. The 34-year-old forward, a two-time NBA champion, matched the second-best road scoring effort of his career as the Clippers improved to 25-27. “Just being aggressive. My teammates trust me,” Leonard said. “Every moment when I touch the ball — assist, shooting the basketball or getting a rebound — I’m just trying to help the team win.” Leonard made three steals in a row at the start of the contest. “Just wanted to come out early in the
FLOP TO CONQUEROR: It was sweet vindication for Sam Darnold, who played for four NFL teams before his debut season in Seattle ended in the ultimate win The Seattle Seahawks on Sunday coasted to Super Bowl glory, routing the New England Patriots 29-13 as Sam Darnold sealed his journey from flop quarterback to conqueror of the NFL’s biggest prize. Brushing off a reputation for wilting in big games, journeyman quarterback Darnold threw for a touchdown and 200 yards on the grandest stage of all to give the Seahawks their second-ever Lombardi Trophy. “It’s unbelievable. Everything that has happened in my career, but to do it with this team, I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Darnold said. The victory was buoyed by a dominant defensive display and kicker Jason Myers’
RSS