Schalke 04 2 - 2 Borussia Dortmund: Derby draw dents respective hopes for both Schalke and Borussia Dortmund - 7M sport

Schalke 04 2 - 2 Borussia Dortmund: Derby draw dents respective hopes for both Schalke and Borussia Dortmund



Posted Monday, April 11, 2016 by PA

Borussia Dortmund were left seven points behind Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga with only five games of the season left after being held to a 2-2 draw by local rivals Schalke on Sunday.

Shinji Kagawa gave Dortmund the lead as the Revierderby came to life at the start of the second half following a goalless first period.

Leroy Sane levelled almost instantly before Matthias Ginter headed the visitors back in front in the 56th minute.

Dortmund could not hold on again though, and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's penalty ensured the points would be a shared - a result neither side will be satisfied with Dortmund left further off Bayern's pace and the Royal Blues outside the top six.

Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel made eight changes to the team he sent out against Liverpool in the Europa League on Thursday, making it clear the return leg at Anfield is his priority.

Only Erik Durm, Sven Bender and Mats Hummels were retained from the 1-1 draw against the Reds with Tuchel rotating his team significantly.

Schalke coach Andre Breitenreiter does not have such fixture congestion to contend with, but he still made five changes to the side which lost 3-0 to Ingolstadt last weekend, a move which was more a reaction to that performance than to give anybody a rest.

Breitenreiter might not have been happy with what he saw from his side for the first 25 minutes on Sunday either, as Dortmund had more of the ball, and the chances.

Christian Pulisic was at the heart of most of Dortmund's attacking play and it was he who very nearly broke the deadlock midway through the first half with a shot that flashed just inches wide of the far post.

Sane went even closer at the other end as Schalke appeared to be sparked into action, his shot from distance hitting the outside of the right-hand post.

Junior Caicara then shot wide of the left-hand post with Huntelaar furious he had not been picked out in space in the middle as the home team ended the half strongly.

Tuchel had a surprise in store for the start of the second half, though, with central defender Hummels replaced by attacking midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

The attacking move paid off with Kagawa giving the visitors the lead four minutes in with a delightful lob leaving Ralf Fahrmann no chance in the Schalke goal.

The hosts replied within two minutes, however, with Roman Burki repelling shot after shot before finally being beaten by Sane's effort.

The derby was now in full swing and Dortmund regained the lead just five minutes later when Mkhitaryan's deflected cross was headed in by Ginter from six yards.

It was not enough for all three points, though, as a foul by Sokratis Papastathopoulos on Huntelaar saw the referee point to the spot.

The Dutch forward stepped up to beat Burki and bring Schalke level again.

Schalke substitute Msx Meyer had the best chance to snatch all three points late on, but he volleyed over from close range as the spoils were shared.



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