Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Mainz 05: Dortmund lose more ground in title race

Borussia Dortmund were held to a 1-1 draw by Mainz 05 in their final Bundesliga game of the year on Tuesday, making it four league games without a win for embattled coach Edin Terzic.

Dortmund dominated early on, hitting the crossbar through Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and missing a string of golden chances against a desperate Mainz defense.

They took the lead in the 29th minute on a curled Julian Brandt free kick and nearly added another seconds later when a Marcel Sabitzer shot bounced off the crossbar.

Their squandering was punished two minutes before the break when Mainz scored with their first chance of the game, Sepp van den Berg's close-range header crossing the line.

Gio Reyna thought he had snatched a late winner for the hosts, but his effort was ruled offside, dropping Dortmund to fifth place on 27 points after just one win in their last eight league games.

Terzic stated unequivocally that despite their poor record, he would remain in charge in the new year.

The Ruhr valley club, runners-up last season, are already 12 points off the top and four points behind fourth-placed VfB Stuttgart, who are in action on Wednesday.

SportsLigue