BERLIN, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Borussia Dortmund returned to winning ways with a 2-1 victory at Cologne on Saturday.
Cologne started energetically, pushing Dortmund back early on. Isak Bergmann Johannesson threatened within minutes and Youssoupha Niang tested Gregor Kobel with a header as Cologne piled up six early corners but failed to convert.
Dortmund scored with its first clear opportunity. After a corner was only partially cleared, Maximilian Beier recycled the ball into the box, where Serhou Guirassy stretched to steer it past Marvin Schwabe in the 16th minute.
Cologne attempted to respond through Said El Mala and Niang but lacked accuracy, and its situation worsened in first-half stoppage time when Jahmai Simpson-Pusey fouled Beier from behind. The referee initially showed a yellow card, but a VAR review upgraded it to red.
Despite being a man down, the host nearly equalized after the restart. Kobel denied Kaminski from close range and Julian Ryerson blocked Niang's follow-up, but Dortmund punished the missed chance almost immediately. A quick exchange between Beier and Julian Brandt ended with Beier curling into the far corner in the 60th minute to make it 2-0.
Dortmund then controlled possession. A penalty initially awarded for a challenge involving Cenk Ozkacar and Fabio Silva was overturned on review. Cologne kept pushing and pulled one back in the 88th minute when Kaminski's shot deflected in off Waldemar Anton.
The result keeps Borussia Dortmund second in the Bundesliga standings with 55 points from 25 matches, 11 behind leader Bayern Munich, while Cologne remains 13th with 24 points, two clear of the relegation play-off place.
"We won a game we didn't play well. After the Bayern match, we needed a different response," Dortmund coach Niko Kovac said.
Elsewhere, third-placed TSG Hoffenheim overpowered bottom side Heidenheim 4-2. VfB Stuttgart missed the chance to close the gap after drawing 2-2 with Mainz. Fifth-placed RB Leipzig moved level on points with Stuttgart thanks to a 2-1 win over Augsburg, Freiburg and Bayer Leverkusen shared a 3-3 draw, and Hamburger beat struggling Wolfsburg 2-1 to deepen the host's relegation concerns. ■
