Haris Tabakovic struck in the 90th minute as Borussia Monchengladbach secured Bundesliga survival with a dramatic 1-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund.
Borussia Monchengladbach secured their Bundesliga safety in dramatic fashion as a late strike from Haris Tabakovic sealed a deserved 1-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund at Borussia-Park.
The match began in unusual circumstances after Dortmund’s delayed arrival forced kickoff back by ten minutes.
Gladbach slowly settled into control, however, and the first meaningful warning came when Joe Scally struck sweetly from the edge of the area, forcing Gregor Kobel into a sharp save. Kobel was beaten moments later by Nico Elvedi’s fine volley from a free-kick, but the offside flag spared the visitors.
Knowing that one more positive result would officially secure their top-flight status, Gladbach pushed with growing confidence. Scally continued to be influential down the flank, while Tabakovic began to find dangerous spaces in the Dortmund area. The striker looked certain to score from close range after another promising delivery, only for Kobel to stand firm once again and keep the scoreline intact.
Full time. pic.twitter.com/3HpdKfWe4j
— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) May 3, 2026
The pressure did not ease before the interval. Franck Honorat’s wicked corner almost brought the breakthrough when Yannik Engelhardt glanced a header narrowly wide, while Dortmund offered almost nothing going forward.
Their only notable attacking moment of the half arrived with the final kick, but Samuele Inacio’s tame effort was comfortably handled by Moritz Nicolas, summing up a flat and lifeless first-half display from the visitors.
Gladbach resumed after the break exactly where they had left off. Tabakovic spurned another huge opening from six yards under pressure, and Kevin Stöger also failed to make the most of a presentable sight of goal as Kobel continued to bail Dortmund out.
There were occasional hints that Niko Kovac’s side might awaken as Julian Brandt flashed a half chance and Julian Ryerson later blasted wildly over, but there was never any sustained Dortmund momentum.
Kovac introduced Fabio Silva in search of a late twist, and the substitute briefly looked capable of stealing an undeserved result when he led a promising counterattack, only to waste the final finish.
Gladbach, meanwhile, kept probing. Rocco Reitz came agonisingly close when he failed to convert a low Honorat centre five minutes from time, but the midfielder would make amends moments later with the pass that changed everything.
Deep into the 90th minute, Reitz threaded a perfectly weighted through ball behind the Dortmund defence and Tabakovic timed his run superbly before finishing coolly past Kobel. The offside flag initially threatened to ruin the celebrations, but VAR confirmed the striker was onside, sending Borussia-Park into ecstasy.
The goal not only delivered Gladbach a first win over Dortmund in seven meetings and mathematically secured survival, but also condemned Dortmund to back-to-back away defeats for the first time in 16 months.
