Borussia Dortmund fought back from 2-1 down against bottom-dwellers Heidenheim to win 3-2 in their Bundesliga clash on Sunday at the Signal Iduna Park.
Out-of-form striker Serhou Guirassy popped up with two late goals to turn the screw on their spirited visitors, but missed a chance to complete his hat-trick after skying an 85th-minute penalty into the stands.
What should have been a comfortable win for the Black and Yellows, was turning into a nightmare as Julian Niehues struck twice in either half to cancel out Waldermar Anton's opener for the hosts.
But Dortmund asserted their dominance in the match soon after as Guirassy equalized from the penalty spot in the 68th minute and made it 3-2 just about 60 seconds later.
The Guinean international had the chance to complete a hat-trick after standing over another penalty in the dying embers, but contrived to fire it over and above.
Dortmund looked wobbly, but a win is a win
It wasn't a convincing win for Borussia Dortmund, given the difference in rankings between the sides here. While the hosts were up in second place, competing for the title with Bayern Munich, Heidenheim were rock-bottom at 18th, having won only thrice all season.
On paper, this seemed like a smooth sail for Niko Kovac's side, but they were rather dull, struggling to assert themselves on their relegation-battling visitors. Things came to a head when Niehues made it 2-1 against all the odds, as Heidenheim were on their way to a historic result.
But Guirassy took the talismanic mantle upon himself and struck twice within a minute to restore Dortmund's lead, which they then protected for the remainder of the match to claim all three points.
With leaders Bayern dropping points for the second matchday in a row, Dortmund were able to further trim the gap here and now sit only six points behind them. At this point, getting the job done is better than getting it done convincingly, perhaps.
Could this double inspire Guirassy's comeback?
Serhou Guirassy hasn't been the same for months after hitting peak form in the opening two weeks of the campaign. His goals have been sporadic and uneven. Also, many of them have come towards the closing stages of the match.
The pattern was repeated again last evening as the Guinean hitman roared back onto the scoresheet after five games with two goals in the last 30 minutes of the match that saved Dortmund the blushes.
His first strike was a clinical penalty, firing one into the top-right corner beyond Heidenheim goalkeeper's reach, and then bagged his second of the evening with a low-drive from the edge of the box following a nice crossfield pass from Maximilian Beier.
Besides the missed penalty late on, this was vintage Guirassy: deadly, predatory and menacing - just the qualities that Kovac would love to see him produce more frequently. Perhaps, this match-winning performance could inspire another ruthless streak?
Title race opens up
Yes, there's still a six-point gap between Dortmund and Bayern. But until two weeks ago, it was 11 and the Bavarians looked home and hosed already. Fast forward to the start of Feb 2025, and suddenly the title race appears to be opening up.
In their last two games, Bayern have lost to Augsburg, their first top-flight loss of the season, before throwing away a 2-1 lead against Hamburger to draw 2-2. Dortmund capitalized on the slip-ups by winning both their league fixtures during this run.
It's all boiling up towards an epic showdown between the Der Klassiker rivals later this month at the Signal Iduna Park, which will be a make-or-break game for Kovac and co.