A slightly rattled BVB gets set to take on a Hannover side which put northern rivals HSV to the sword last week.
Jürgen Klopp’s press interview was slightly negative and even strange following a defeat to Bayern in the DFB Pokal. His side had looked second best and was lucky to have only conceded once. He was asked about the Robert Lewandowski rumors. He simply changed the subject and replied with a question regarding the futures of Mario Gomez and Arjen Robben.
Klopp was perhaps reeling from the loss of two domestic crowns, perhaps to Bayern. Dortmund still has the Champions League to play for. However, fifteen other excellent teams have as much a chance as Klopp’s team does of winning the competition. This week, the Ruhr side takes on Hannover.
Hannover is seventh in the table currently, looking hungrily at the European berths. Last week, they boosted their goal difference a bit by hammering HSV 5-1. Mame Biram Diouf’s opener was cancelled out by a penalty from Rafael van der Vaart. That Van der Vaart spot kick was the last sight HSV would get of the opposition net’s movement on the night.
Szabolcs Huszti stepped up to take a penalty six minutes prior to halftime for Hannover. He put in plenty of effort into converting the spot kick, so much so that he injured his hamstring in the process. He converted nonetheless. Two goals from Didier Ya Konan and one from Mohammed Abdellaoue put the game beyond doubt.
And Hannover did this with only 36 percent possession. This is similar to what BVB did to Ajax earlier in the season in the Champions League.
When BVB and Hannover met early on in the season, Dortmund controlled the ebb and flow of the game. The performance was rather average nonetheless and Hannover slowly grew into the match. After missing some gilt edged chances, Hannover finally converted with four minutes of normal time left to pick up a 1-1 draw.
The following meeting was much less of a contest though. BVB was magnificent in the DFB Pokal meeting in December, absolutely hammering Hannover 5-1. Hannover was made to look like a side from the Fussball Regionalliga in that match. They never really had a chance. Mario Götze was magnificent that day, bagging a hat-trick.
A certain Robert Lewandowski also struck in that win. Lewandowski’s name has been in the papers regularly this week as he may possibly be on his way out of the Ruhr club. He was absolutely shut out by the Bayern central defense on Wednesday. His ban for the red card he collected against HSV has been reduced to two matches by the DFB. The Polish striker could hence feature in this clash.
Overall, this match has a bit of a different complexion to it than did the past two meetings. Who will win this clash?
Prediction: Dortmund 2-1 Hannover
Klopp was perhaps reeling from the loss of two domestic crowns, perhaps to Bayern. Dortmund still has the Champions League to play for. However, fifteen other excellent teams have as much a chance as Klopp’s team does of winning the competition. This week, the Ruhr side takes on Hannover.
Hannover is seventh in the table currently, looking hungrily at the European berths. Last week, they boosted their goal difference a bit by hammering HSV 5-1. Mame Biram Diouf’s opener was cancelled out by a penalty from Rafael van der Vaart. That Van der Vaart spot kick was the last sight HSV would get of the opposition net’s movement on the night.
Szabolcs Huszti stepped up to take a penalty six minutes prior to halftime for Hannover. He put in plenty of effort into converting the spot kick, so much so that he injured his hamstring in the process. He converted nonetheless. Two goals from Didier Ya Konan and one from Mohammed Abdellaoue put the game beyond doubt.
And Hannover did this with only 36 percent possession. This is similar to what BVB did to Ajax earlier in the season in the Champions League.
When BVB and Hannover met early on in the season, Dortmund controlled the ebb and flow of the game. The performance was rather average nonetheless and Hannover slowly grew into the match. After missing some gilt edged chances, Hannover finally converted with four minutes of normal time left to pick up a 1-1 draw.
The following meeting was much less of a contest though. BVB was magnificent in the DFB Pokal meeting in December, absolutely hammering Hannover 5-1. Hannover was made to look like a side from the Fussball Regionalliga in that match. They never really had a chance. Mario Götze was magnificent that day, bagging a hat-trick.
A certain Robert Lewandowski also struck in that win. Lewandowski’s name has been in the papers regularly this week as he may possibly be on his way out of the Ruhr club. He was absolutely shut out by the Bayern central defense on Wednesday. His ban for the red card he collected against HSV has been reduced to two matches by the DFB. The Polish striker could hence feature in this clash.
Overall, this match has a bit of a different complexion to it than did the past two meetings. Who will win this clash?
Prediction: Dortmund 2-1 Hannover
