Dynamo Dresden got off to the better start in front of 31,733 spectators at the Rudolf-Harbig-Stadion. Fröling, who replaced the ill Amoako in the starting eleven, posed a threat as early as the fourth minute.
Hannover, however, scored the first goal: After a handball by Faber, the referee awarded a penalty after the VAR was called. Pichler confidently converted in the middle in the 11th minute to make it 0:1 - his first goal for 96. The visitors now looked more dominant and Okon headed against the crossbar (26'). But Dresden turned the game around: First Ghita scored an own goal after a Sapina cross (35'), shortly afterwards Fröling dusted off a corner to make it 2-1 (41'). Just two minutes later, Aseko Nkili equalized to make it 2:2 after Leopold's assist from a turn (43'). Pichler hit the post just before the break (45.+6).
The game remained open after the break. Hauptmann fired just wide of the top right-hand post from distance (53'). Sapina then weakened the Dresden side when he went in with an open foot against Leopold and was shown the red card (54').
Hannover took the initiative when they were outnumbered, but Dresden fought passionately. Schreiber made a strong save from Taibi (68'), but otherwise the visitors were mostly harmless. Dynamo could have scored the winner in the closing stages: Kutschke failed to beat Noll with his head (77'), Kammerknecht hit the post (90.+1).
Even before the match, the wave of illness at Dynamo caused a stir: Kofi Amoako and Jonas Oehmichen fell ill the night before the game, while Jan Hendrik Marx has been out for two days. Many fans were surprised about the missing players in the squad; Nils Fröling was also substituted and is believed to be suffering from an infection. Coach Thomas Stamm explained this in the press conference.
In the end, it remained 2:2 - a result that cost Hannover the lead in the table but was celebrated as a small victory for Dynamo.
Votes on the game
"We got off to a good start, had two or three clean moments before the penalty and could have made more of it," explained Stamm. "After the red card, we defended very passionately, Tim Schreiber kept us in the game once, and in the end we even had the better chances. We can be absolutely happy with the point, even if I would have liked it to stay eleven against eleven for longer."
(PS)
