Berlin: Michy Batshuayi struck a stoppage-time goal to lift Borussia Dortmund back to third spot in the Bundesliga with a thrilling 3-2 victory over fifth-placed Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.
It was the second goal for 62nd-minute substitute Batshuayi after Frankfurt thought they had earned a point with a last-minute equaliser.
“Of course I am relieved because I had not scored recently. It was a very important victory,” the Belgium striker told Sky television.
Dortmund took the lead when Frankfurt defender Marco Russ turned the ball into his net while trying to clear a Christian Pulisic cross under pressure from Marco Reus in the 12th minute.
Keeper Roman Buerki prevented an equaliser shortly after the break when he dived to keep out a back-heel from Kevin-Prince Boateng.
But Buerki could do nothing to prevent substitute Luka Jovic’s75th-minute header from a Jonathan de Guzman free-kick.
It was a short-lived equaliser, with Batshuayi taking a pass from Pulisic to slot in off the post two minutes later.
Frankfurt’s Danny Blum turned in a low cross from Danny da Costa in the final minute but Batshuayi, who joined from Chelsea just before the end of the January transfer window, took a pass from Lukasz Piszczek and turned to hook the ball into the net in the fourth minute of stoppage time.
Dortmund move to 45 points, one behind Ruhr rivals Schalke and 21 adrift of leaders Bayern Munich, who thrashed SV Hamburg 6-0 on Saturday.
Bayer Leverkusen are on 44 while Frankfurt, who could have gone third, remain outside the Champions League qualifying places on 42.
Earlier, visiting Leipzig ended Stuttgart’s four-match winning streak in a dour goalless draw.
Leipzig have now gone four league games without a win and remain sixth on 40 points, while Stuttgart stay midtable and are still undefeated in six matches under coach Tayfun Korkut.
Under the gaze of Germany coach Joachim Loew, neither Leizpig striker Timo Werner — playing against his boyhood club — nor Stuttgart’s Mario Gomez were able to impress.
One of the few chances in a niggly game fell to Werner when he failed to connect properly when racing through against keeper Ron-Robert Zieler just before the break, while Gomez went closest when he flashed a header wide 10 minutes from time.
Gomez and Christian Gentner both had shots blocked just after the hour, Leipzig’s Willi Orban saw a header go over the bar and Stuttgart’s Daniel Ginczek headed wide in a late flurry but it was a game neither side did enough to win.
“We’ll take the point as VfB (Stuttgart) have been playing well of late,” Werner told Sky television.
“Now we will have to get something against Bayern (Munich) next weekend.”
Stuttgart are now nine points clear of the relegation zone after their run under Korkut and look to be out of danger.— dpa
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
