Postseason Roundtable Part 3: Goal of the Season

With all the offensive firepower that Borussia Dortmund possess, from Jadon Sancho to Marco Reus to Erling Haaland, there was no shortage of incredible goals this season. From overhead kicks to goals from distance to last minute winners, this season had everything.

Today, we the writers of Fear the Wall have come together to give our goals of the season for BVB, from any competition.

Sean Keyser: Ansgar Knauff’s Clutch First Goal

This goal is perfect because not only is it a brilliant moment of individual quality, but it came at the perfect moment in BVB’s season. Dortmund had lost to Eintracht Frankfurt the previous weekend, and had just given up an equalizing goal to Stuttgart in the 78th minute. It looked like BVB would drop points once again, putting a nail in the coffin of the club’s hopes to qualify for the Champions League. Then, something magical happened.

The 19 year old winger Ansgar Knauff, making only his third appearance of the season, collected the ball at the top of the box. Facing two Stuttgart defenders, he froze them with some quick footwork before cutting to his right foot and whipping in a curled shot through a maze of bodies, past Gregor Kobel, and into the net.

We didn’t know it at the time, but this goal would help turn BVB’s season around. They’d go on to win the following six games to end the Bundesliga season firmly in the top four.

Mike Solak: Mahmoud Dahoud’s Stunner in Seville

Sean finishes his goal shout with how Knauff’s goal helped turn the season around, and it was a special moment. However, let’s go back to February when Borussia Dortmund were traveling away in the Champions League to face Sevilla FC. Without Axel Witsel and Thomas Delaney, Edin Terzic was forced to turn to Mahmoud Dahoud, a player he specifically left behind just a month prior when traveling to Leipzig. Down 1-0 early to a fluke Sevilla goal, Dortmund kept their cool and when Erling Haaland fought off the Sevilla defense, he found Dahoud who curled in a stunner from over 20 yards to catapult BVB in the tie, but also for the remainder of the season.

That goal not only changed the trajectory of Dahoud’s season and possibly his BVB career, but also the club’s disappointing campaign to that moment. In fact, that victory in Andalusia was the true turning point in the season. Dortmund would play 19 more matches in all competitions the rest of the season and Dahoud would start nearly all of them. Die Schwarzgelben finished with 13 wins, 2 draws, and only 4 losses which were to Bayern Munich and Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga, and Manchester City twice in the next round of the UCL. However, with Dortmund climbing back into the top four and winning the DFB-Pokal, the finish to the season more than made up for the poor start, and Dahoud’s goal was the catalyst for it all.

Paul Johnson: Jude Bellingham’s (Allowed) Goal Versus Man City

This one wasn’t the best goal of the season, but it was definitely my favorite. Bellingham has been tons of fun to watch since he joined BVB, and his performance across both legs against Man City was exceptional. He was robbed of a goal in the first leg, so when he popped up just inside the penalty area early in the second leg, burying his shot to open the scoring, it was extremely satisfying.

While there’s a real possibility that we will lose Jadon Sancho and/or Erling Haaland this summer, Bellingham has shown that we still have plenty to be excited about, and alongside Gio Reyna, Youssoufa Moukoko, and Ansgar Knauff, there’s plenty of young talent in this BVB squad.

Zac Weilminster: Rapha Guerreiro’s Slicing Strike Against Mainz

Dortmund had a job to do on Matchday 33 against Mainz; get the win to seal Champions League qualification. Sure, there was another game to play for Die Schwarzgelben but leaving results for the final matchday of the season is not exactly the scenario you want to create for yourself. Raphael Guerreiro, though not Dortmund’s most vocal player, made his intention to play with Europe’s elite loud and clear with this strike in the 23rd minute.

The goal set the tone for the rest of the match, as Dortmund comfortably cruised to a victory and assured their place in the top four. It was weeks of top-drawer results that allowed Dortmund to be in this position, not just Guerreiro’s sublime strike, but each game requires the players to step up and secure a result. Guerreiro was a notable omission from the Bundesliga Team of the Season (mostly because of the sale of packs in EA’s FIFA, a partner to the league), but the fullback’s exceptional season was capped off with a wonderful strike to remind any doubters who the best attacking left-back in Europe was this season.

Sarah Sekac: Łukasz Piszczek’s First (and last) Champions League Goal

Back in December, BVB needed a win in order to finish at the top of Group F during the group stages of their Champions League campaign. Readers may recall that the squad was playing without some of their regular starters (Erling Haaland, Thomas Meunier and Manuel Akanji) and for playing against a team that was finishing at the bottom (Zenit St. Petersburg), they looked tired and slow and even fell behind in the 16th minute!

As we know, a match can turn on a dime and BVB’s luck seemed to change with a historical equalizer in the 68th minute by the revered GOAT himself, Łukasz Piszczek. Resulting from a set piece, the ball bounced from Jude Bellingham to Marco Reus to Mats Hummels before Piszczek delivered it to the back of the net. His elation was immediately evident as was that of his teammates. Piszcu being a Champions League goal scorer was icing on the cake that is his storied footballing career.