Ethan Nwaneri’s 18-Second Red Card Overturned in Dortmund Draw
Arsenal loanee Ethan Nwaneri escaped an extraordinary dismissal just 18 seconds into Borussia Dortmund’s Bundesliga draw with Union Berlin, when referee Daniel Schlager briefly showed a red card before correcting himself and producing a yellow.
The 19-year-old England midfielder had gone into a rapid sliding tackle on Union defender Tom Rothe. With Nwaneri’s studs catching Rothe around the ankle, Schlager initially reached for a red card, only to realise almost immediately that he had selected the wrong one. He withdrew the dismissal and booked the Dortmund player instead, while head coach Niko Kovac reacted with a smile on the touchline.
Nwaneri was able to continue, but the early incident set the tone for a difficult individual afternoon. He struggled to make an impact before being taken off shortly after the hour mark.
Kobel: Challenge was close to a sending-off
Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel said the moment caused immediate confusion among Dortmund’s players. “I thought I was seeing things,” the Switzerland international said after the match.
Kobel also felt Nwaneri had been fortunate that the contact was not higher up Rothe’s leg. “The foul was right on the borderline,” he said. “I don’t know whether you need to go into a challenge like that.”
The result added to a disappointing week for Dortmund, who had been beaten 1-0 by Bodo/Glimt in midweek before failing to find a way past Union. The draw exposed the side’s lack of attacking conviction, despite the summer arrival of Nwaneri following Giannis Konstantelias’ cruciate ligament injury on the opening matchday.
Dortmund urged to show more courage
Sporting director Nils-Ole Book said Dortmund had not played with enough ambition to break through Union’s defence.
“We’re disappointed. We wanted to do a lot more,” Book said. “To get in behind, you need to play with more courage all over the field. We started doing that far too late.”
He added that the team’s best football comes when it is more positive in possession and presses opponents higher up the pitch. “When we’re bolder, we play really good football and are able to put pressure on our opponents,” Book said.
Dortmund now return to Champions League action on Tuesday against Azerbaijani side Sabah. Kovac’s team are seeking their second victory of the competition and need a convincing response after the Bodo/Glimt defeat and the Union stalemate.
Nwaneri has made seven appearances this season and will hope his next opportunity brings a first start in Europe rather than another afternoon dominated by an early disciplinary scare.
