Borussia Dortmund's Julian Ryerson: BVB had the game against Hoffenheim "fully in their own hands"

Borussia Dortmund suffered yet another serious blow in their Bundesliga campaign as the second half of the season continues to unravel with the club losing 3-2 to Hoffenheim at home. A Maximilian Beier brace led the way to Hoffenheim's victory, but in many ways, Dortmund had only themselves to blame for the result.

After the game, Norwegian international Julian Ryerson spoke out about his club's performance, very much sharing the sentiment that this was a game Dortmund should have taken all three points from. According to Ryerson, his side simply made too many mistakes:

"We [Dortmund] started sloppy, and made too many mistakes...after we made two goals [and started] a comeback...we had it fully in our own hands and that's why it's so disappointing. It is such a bad feeling to come out with zero points."

- Julian Ryerson

Ryerson's assessment of Dortmund starting sloppy alluded to Hoffenheim's opener courtesy of Ihlas Bebou, who pounced on a very reckless pass from Emre Can, who's intended target was Nico Schlotterbeck. Can failed to perceive the imminent danger Bebou posed, and Dortmund were very much punished for his mistake.

Ryerson himself had a very similar moment in the game, where his mis-pass to Beier almost led to another goal. Unlike Dortmund's current captain in recent matches, Ryerson didn't elect to make excuses for the team's performance when asked why the second half was so difficult for his side:

"it's difficult to say right after the game. I think they [Hoffenheim] didn't have the same patterns of play as in the first half. They changed something in how they pressed us, but we should be able to solve this. One mistake leads to another and breaks the rhythm of the game for us. But still, you have to be able to work through those phases even if you make mistakes. You have to work through those and get the three points. "

- Julian Ryerson

The change in patterns of play and how Hoffenheim pressed Dortmund were fairly simple; they chose not to show fear and took advantage of a team that's shown they can be rattled even by slightest increase in pressure and direct play. Ryerson's sentiment that the team should have still won is correct however, as after coming back and scoring two goals Dortmund had the opportunities to really put the game beyond doubt, which unfortuantely they didn't.

Dortmund's loss to Hoffenheim now extends Dortmund's winless streak to three games in all competitions. Next weekend, they face a Union Berlin side in similarly poor form to Hoffenheim, and just like Hoffenheim, have proven to be a thorn in Dortmund's side in recent years. It is yet again another must win game for Dortmund as they approach a very busy March and far stronger opposition to contend with.