Guirassy fires Stuttgart to Dortmund win

Borussia Dortmund 0-1 VfB Stuttgart
Goals: 0-1 Guirassy 64' (assist Leweling)

Once the smoke finally settled on Dortmund's pre-match 50th anniversary celebrations of the Westfalenstadion, it was time for Karim Adeyemi to bring the heat. The in-form forward, fresh off of his goalscoring heroics against Bayern in Der Klassiker, threatened to take Stuttgart down by himself. Winning his battles and leaving defenders in his wake, it was left to Alexander Nübel to stop him in the 32nd minute with a last-gasp one-on-one effort that somehow kept the score level. Going the other way, it was the Bundesliga's surprise goalscoring package, Guirassy, who had BVB captain Emre Can all over him. In both battles, the defence came out on top, setting the stage for an intriguing second half.

There was an early indicator that the tables may be turning when Jamie Leweling, who'd had an exhausting opening 45 minutes up against Adeyemi, breezed past the Germany international and flew at the Dortmund box, seeing his shot just blocked. Three minutes later, it was time for another battle to be flipped. A poor pass from Can was cut out by VfB, who set off on a passing move that scythed through the Dortmund defence before Guirassy fired in from just inside the box. Niklas Füllkrug had the chance to equalise a minute later, but his failure to get a header on target left the away side thinking it was their day to spoil the party. Another miss for Füllkrug signalled desperation mode for Dortmund, who should have been rewarded when a hard-earned corner was parried by Nübel, only for Nico Schlotterbeck to miss an open goal. Edin Terzić's men continued to threaten from corners and crosses from the right, but Nübel was imperious enough for a stellar clean sheet. With six games remaining, third-placed Stuttgart have a seven-point cushion on RB Leipzig and a Dortmund team now outside the top four on goal difference.

Watch: Alex Nübel on Stuttgart's style

• Guirassy has equalled Mario Gomez's club record 24-goal haul of 2008/09.
• Guirassy's 24 strikes and Deniz Undav's 15 make them the most successful single-season strike partnership in Stuttgart history.
• Dortmund have lost four of their 14 home games so far in 2023/24. They were beaten just once in 17 at the Signal Iduna Park last term.
• Stuttgart have won eight of their last 10, including five in a row on the road - a first for them in the Bundesliga.
• Hoeneß's team made it a hat-trick of wins over BVB, having already beaten them at home in the league and in the DFB Cup. Guirassy also scored in those games.
• VfB had previously only won one of their last 14 in Dortmund.

>>> Get Guirassy for your Fantasy team!

Watch: Nico Schlotterbeck on painful Stuttgart defeat

Dortmund: Kobel - Ryerson (Reus 81'), Hummels, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen (Moukoko 81') - Sabitzer (Bynoe-Gittens 72'), Can (c) - Sancho, Brandt (Nmecha 65'), Adeyemi - Füllkrug (Haller 81')
Unused subs: Meyer, Süle, Wolf, Özcan
Out: Bamba (muscular), Bensebaini (knee), Malen (thigh)
Coach: Edin Terzić

Stuttgart: Nübel - Vagnoman (Stergiou 46'), Karazor (c), Ito, Mittelstädt - Leweling (Silas 85'), Millot (Dahoud 86'), Stiller, Führich (Jeong 68') - Undav (Stenzel 90'), Guirassy
Unused subs: Bredlow, Chase, Haraguchi, Raimund
Out: Anton (suspended), Massimo (ill), Nartey (knee), Rouault (broken jaw), Zagadou (knee)
Coach: Sebastian Hoeneß