B. Dortmund 2-Sevilla 2 (3-2) | Haaland's law brings down a Seville full of caste and courage

One minute, from 96 to 97, Sevilla dreamed of extra time at the Westfalenstadion in Dortmund. He had tied En Nesyri, capable of equaling the Moroccan's two initial goals from Haaland, and those from Lopetegui managed to get a goal from extra time. But it was too late. Four goals from a Norwegian striker, two in Nervión and another two in Germany, eliminated from the Champions League a rival who shot with pride and scored a more than worthy round of 16 in Germany, but who decided the implacable law of the goal. And that virtue belongs to the Norwegian giant, implacable in the area and in the melee, an ice man in the area that before the Nervionenses showed courage and hot blood, too.

The Nervión team planted pride and personality, dreamed of offensive arguments in a great start and especially in that final discount, but the caste does not seem enough when they play footballers like Reus, Hummels, Can, Delaney or, above all, Haaland. An insatiable demon.

Borussia is a club with tradition, one of the most common in Germany, but what has made it a European model has been its tremendous innovative character. He does not mind signing rare and young (and expensive), nor do they adopt other people's traditions. Anfield's 'You'll never walk alone' plays before a fine but freezing rain, almost sleet, dismisses the Dortmund and Sevilla footballers on their way to the locker room after warm-up. Haaland stops his step in the center of the field, lifts his trouser legs and stares, almost defiantly, at the Sevilla players. Someone notices and smiles, amidst the surprise and also the nervousness caused by this ruthless Norwegian goal scoring machine.

The giant who arrived from the ice in a club that reinvents itself and surrounds him with a mixture of almost adolescent momentum like his and quality veterans to assist him like Reus. The ideal place. A blonde bison that is scary at every start and that in addition to its imposing physique and its ability to unbalance defenses has the most important gift for a striker: placement, opportunity. Dortmund had not approached the area almost, but Haaland put the first ball that touched in the box (1-0, 35 '), from Reus, in the until then only defensive failure of a Sevilla that excited with a half Delicious football kick-off, but no goal.

Lopetegui's team had deserved to score, able to hunt down the Germans in his area and haunt Hitz several times with dangerous shots from Ocampos and Suso. Bono and Koundé played, doubts before the start, but the surprise in the eleven was Óscar Rodríguez. The Talaverano, from inside left, directed a good part of Sevilla's attacks and grabbed the starting shirt tightly. Oh, if he gets to hook a volley at a quarter of an hour inside the rival area.

The play with which Borussia Dortmund killed the match, from a penalty (Haaland, 2-0, 54 ') will be studied in the VAR schools of the future. The Norwegian striker had scored after pushing Diego Carlos and the Turk Cakir went to see him on video to finally decree … Haaland himself was fouled in Koundé's area. Bono saved the launch from 9 meters but from the VOR room it was appreciated that the Moroccan goalkeeper had gone ahead and forced him to repeat it. After scoring, this time, Erling faced Bono and the sevillistas en bloc went after him. The referee admonished him for his outburst. With him came the goal … and the scandal.

Also from the penalty spot, in a little push from Can over De Jong that Cakir perhaps pointed out to compensate for the bizarre previous move, En Nesyri (2-1, 68 ') scored the goal that gave him spice and sevillista hope to the tie.. Papu Gómez had shaken something between the lines but Hitz defended his goal and Edin Terzic, the German coach, tried to shield his area with some more defender. In Nesyri he made the tie (2-2, 96 '+) and Diego Carlos had a shot at the last minute to force the extension.

Haaland had sent, as so many times before, like the dozens or hundreds of games that (if nothing strange happens) the Norwegian will decide during the next decade, in Dortmund, in Madrid, in Manchester in Munich or wherever they have money to sign him.