U23s held to late draw against Ingolstadt | OneFootball

The scenario: Borussia Dortmund's U23s came into the clash against Ingolstadt on the back of six games without a win (four draws, two defeats). Furthermore, they had only scored one goal in their last five matches, meaning that Jan Zimmermann's team had slipped into the relegation zone of the 3. Liga. Ingolstadt recently regained their footing in the fight for promotion, but had only won four games away from home all season.

Personnel matters: Jan Zimmermann made three changes from the team that drew in Mannheim: Jordi Paulina and Niklas Jessen came into the starting line-up to replace Rodney Elongo-Yombo and Almugera Kabar. Julien Duranville also made his starting XI debut for Borussia Dortmund's second-string side. Antonio Foti took his place on the bench. Top scorer Julian Hettwer was in the squad for the first time in 2025 following an injury to his back.

The match: The visitors had more of the play in the early stages. Dortmund opted for a compact approach in defence and midfield and were happy to give Ingolstadt the ball for the most part. However, the visitors created little danger at first. Borussia then fell behind with the first really threatening incident. After a cross, Ingolstadt's Yannick Deichmann laid the ball off to striker Pascal Testroet, who fired past BVB keeper Marcel Lotka to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.

Following the opening goal, the game ebbed and flowed until the 31st minute. A defensive header from Franz Roggow was seized on by Kjell Wätjen, who sprinted into space and set off on a fantastic solo run. The 19-year-old sprinted around three defenders and then fired home from 18 metres to equalise the score at 1-1. The Black & Yellows immediately followed up: just four minutes after the equaliser, Tony Reitz delivered a free-kick from a half-right position into Ingolstadt's area. After a scramble, the ball landed centrally at the feet of Michael Eberwein, with the veteran making no mistake to fire home and bring the score to 2-1.

After Dortmund's second goal, Zimmermann's team became more dominant: Kjell Wätjen failed to score his brace shortly before the break after being played in by Franz Roggow. Borussia put the promotion hopefuls under pressure with a handful of effective attacking moves and went into the break with a 2-1 lead.

The second half was even more entertaining for the spectators at the Rote Erde. Just 25 seconds after the restart, Michael Eberwein scored another goal for Borussia. BVB were the dominant team, but missed several opportunities to increase their lead. Then the visitors made their comeback: from a simple throw-in, Zimmermann's U23 team conceded the equaliser scored by Ingolstadt's Tim Heike (55).

Jordi Paulina had the chance to put BVB back in front just a few seconds later: the Dutchman was alone in front of Ingolstadt's goal after a set-piece, but fired the ball over the bar. Tony Reitz did better minutes later, receiving the ball from Franz Roggow at the edge of the box and finishing with a powerful shot to make it 3-2 (68). It was just reward for a strong display by Borussia.

With 17 shots on goal to none, the Black & Yellows were clearly the superior team, but still squandered numerous great chances. Dortmund's top scorer Julian Hettwer made his comeback in the 75th minute, having not featured so far in the 2025 calendar year due to a back injury. Kjell Wätjen, who had been outstanding up to that point, left the pitch with an injury.

Goalkeeper Marcel Lotka was unfortunate to let a header from Ingolstadt's Ryan Malone fall in front of him in the 81st minute and Pascal Testroet got a touch on the ball to equalise the scores at 3-3. It was a bitter pill to swallow for BVB. Similar to the reverse fixture, which Ingolstadt won 5-3, the second leg proved to be a wild battle. In the final minutes, both teams had chances to snatch a winner - but in the end, nothing could separate them.

Coach Jan Zimmermann: "We have to make do with the 3-3 draw. The fact that we scored three goals against Ingolstadt shows the quality we have. Three goals conceded is too many, but we'll take a lot of confidence with us to Verl."

Tony Reitz: "We should have won the game. Unfortunately, we're still making too many simple mistakes. We have to take this performance into the next few games.Even though the goal drought is now over, we could have scored more today. Having a 3-2 lead ten minutes before the end, you obviously want to win the game."

Outlook: Thanks to the point gained, Borussia have jumped to 15th place in the table after Matchday 31 and have moved out of the relegation zone. Two challenging fixtures are on the agenda for the upcoming English week: first, the U23s travel to SC Verl on Wednesday (9 April). Next Sunday (13 April), BVB will then host second-placed FC Energie Cottbus.