The disappointment at Borussia Dortmund after the 1-3 defeat against Ajax on the fourth match day of the group stage of the Champions League is great. Referee Michael Oliver in particular does not have to show up in the German city for the time being. The referee on duty from England gave Mats Hummels a questionable red card in the first half on Wednesday evening and the team from Amsterdam took full advantage of that surplus situation after the break.
After less than half an hour of play, Hummels started a duel with Antony with a wild sliding. The Brazilian rolled across the field, after which Oliver immediately drew red. The repetition showed that the charge was less heavy than it appeared at first glance, but the VAR did not intervene. “It is a bitter defeat, but just think about playing with one less man for more than an hour against a club like Ajax. That is almost impossible,” said trainer Marco Rose after the second defeat against Erik’s team. ten Hag.
???????? ???????? ???????? ???????????????? ?? After any doubt, the defender must leave the field anyway. Say it ??#ZiggoSport #UCL #BVBAJA pic.twitter.com/gILxvzFhZd
— Ziggo Sport Football (@ZS_Voetbal) Nov 3, 2021
“We played a good first 25 minutes and also had chances. Ajax did not come into the match well. At that stage, we didn’t give much away,” Rose said at the press conference. “After that, with a red card that of course wasn’t there, it got tough.” Rose didn’t understand Hummels’ red card. “I don’t think Hummels even hit him. I haven’t spoken to anyone who thought it was a red card. We now have the means to review everything, so that’s why I don’t get it. If you have a chance to correct things and look at something again… I find it hard to follow.”
“Antony himself told me that it was not red”, Hummels was of course disappointed after the game in Signal Iduna Park. “He is a fantastic player, hopefully he will also learn how to become a good sportsman.” The Dortmund defender does not understand why Oliver was not corrected by the VAR. “How can he still think it’s a red card when he sees the footage? The referee has influenced this match so much. How can an arbiter who is allowed to whistle at this level make such a decision?”
In any case, Rose thought it was positive that his team took the lead despite the undernumbering situation. “In the second half we also held on for a long time, but in the end Ajax makes the 1-1 and the 1-2. My players had been competing with ten men for almost an hour. Then that third goal of Ajax can also fall. Ajax is through to the eighth finals, now we have to compete with Sporting Portugal for position two.” The clubs from Dortmund and Lisbon are on six points after four matchdays and mutual results are decisive if both teams have the same number of points after six matchdays. In three weeks, the teams will meet in Portugal. Rose’s team won 1-0 at home.
There was no leading role for Donyell Malen. In the final phase, the attacker was allowed to participate as a substitute for another fifteen minutes. “That was the coach’s choice. I had been ill, but it was a pity,” said the the Dutch international at RTL7.