Gladbach beat Dortmund to secure safety as St Pauli slip into relegation places

BERLIN: Borussia Moenchengladbach confirmed their Bundesliga survival for next season after Haris Tabakovic struck two minutes from time to seal a 1-0 home win over Borussia Dortmund on Sunday.

Dortmund, who had already secured Champions League qualification last week, struggled in attack against a Gladbach side that needed victory to become mathematically safe. Tabakovic broke through in the closing stages and finished past goalkeeper Gregor Kobel to settle the match.

The result means Dortmund, despite losing for the third time in four matches, still require only two more points to secure second place behind champions Bayern Munich for the fifth time in the last eight seasons.

It wasn't good, Dortmund coach Niko Kovac said to DAZN. Gladbach were sharp, they had bite -- they played like they had a lot at stake, and it looked like we did not.

The defeat was justified.

Gladbach had threatened earlier in the game as Nico Elvedi found the net midway through the first half, but the effort was ruled out for offside. Tabakovic, who was Gladbach's most dangerous attacking player, then forced Kobel into a save from close range and also sent an effort just wide early in the second half.

When the breakthrough finally came with two minutes left, the assistant initially flagged Tabakovic offside. The goal was later awarded after a VAR review. The win gave Gladbach their first victory over Dortmund since November 2022.

Mainz win pushes St Pauli closer to relegation

Earlier on Sunday, Mainz secured their top-flight status for next season with a 2-1 victory away to St Pauli. Phillip Tietz and Phillipp Mwene scored for Mainz in a result that left the home side in deeper trouble near the bottom of the table.

Wolfsburg's late 1-1 draw at Freiburg moved St Pauli, who have not won since February, into the automatic relegation places. St Pauli were promoted to the Bundesliga in 2024 after spending much of their history in Germany's second and third divisions.

We've got no time to dwell on these results, St Pauli captain Jackson Irvine told DAZN. We've got two matchdays to fight for our life.

Wolfsburg's draw lifted them above St Pauli and into the relegation play-off position. The same result also ensured that Hamburg and Union Berlin are now mathematically safe from relegation.

For Freiburg, the point was enough to move them above Frankfurt into the Europa Conference League qualification spot. However, the Black Forest club still have a chance to reach next season's Champions League by winning the Europa League. They trail Portuguese side Braga 2-1 ahead of the second leg of their semi-final at home on Thursday.