Gladbach v Dortmund
Gladbach crush Dortmund 4-2 for second straight defeat
Borussia Monchengladbach fired four goals past hapless Borussia Dortmund for a 4-2 victory on Friday to leave their opponents in sixth place following their second straight league loss.
With the Bundesliga going into a prolonged winter break after this weekend for the World Cup in Qatar, Champions League club Dortmund end their year on a low, six points off leaders Bayern Munich, in action at Schalke 044 on Saturday.
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Gladbach, who have now won six of their eight home games so far, are in seventh place on 22 points, three behind Dortmund.
In a sumptuous five-goal first half, the hosts went into the break with a 3-2 lead.
Jonas Hofmann, fresh from his Germany World Cup squad inclusion, slotted in for the lead after four minutes before Julian Brandt, another World Cup-bound Germany international, drew the visitors level.
He picked up the ball with his back to the goal, turned quickly and volleyed in a superb equaliser.
Gladbach, however, scored twice more in a four-minute span through Ramy Bensebaini and Marcus Thuram to go 3-1 up. Dortmund pulled a goal back with Nico Schlotterbeck's volley on the rebound but the Ruhr valley club were badly leaking at the back.
Only a minute after the restart, Kouadio Kone was given too much time at the edge of the box and he threaded a low shot past goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.
Thuram should have added at least one more goal but he missed a string of golden chances as Dortmund faltered.
Game Information
- Referees:
- Sven Jablonski
German Bundesliga Standings
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bayern München | 33 | 27 | 5 | 1 | +82 | 86 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 33 | 21 | 7 | 5 | +34 | 70 |
| RB Leipzig | 33 | 20 | 5 | 8 | +22 | 65 |
| VfB Stuttgart | 33 | 18 | 7 | 8 | +22 | 61 |
| TSG Hoffenheim | 33 | 18 | 7 | 8 | +17 | 61 |
| Bayer Leverkusen | 33 | 17 | 7 | 9 | +21 | 58 |
| SC Freiburg | 33 | 12 | 8 | 13 | -9 | 44 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 33 | 11 | 10 | 12 | -4 | 43 |
| FC Augsburg | 33 | 12 | 7 | 14 | -12 | 43 |
| Mainz | 33 | 9 | 10 | 14 | -11 | 37 |
| Hamburg SV | 33 | 9 | 10 | 14 | -14 | 37 |
| 1. FC Union Berlin | 33 | 9 | 9 | 15 | -18 | 36 |
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 33 | 8 | 11 | 14 | -15 | 35 |
| FC Cologne | 33 | 7 | 11 | 15 | -10 | 32 |
| Werder Bremen | 33 | 8 | 8 | 17 | -21 | 32 |
| VfL Wolfsburg | 33 | 6 | 8 | 19 | -26 | 26 |
| 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 | 33 | 6 | 8 | 19 | -29 | 26 |
| St. Pauli | 33 | 6 | 8 | 19 | -29 | 26 |

