Borussia Dortmund goes into the Bundesliga summit against FC Bayern with a powerful tailwind. Two weeks before what could possibly be the decisive duel for the title between the top Bundesliga teams after the international break, BVB took the lead in the table at least for a day thanks to a 6-1 (4-1) win against 1. FC Köln.
In front of 81,365 spectators in the sold-out stadium, the goalscorers Raphael Guerreiro (15th minute), Sébastien Haller (17th/69th), Marco Reus (32nd/70th) and Donyell Malen (36th) drove Dortmund’s frustration over the Saturday Champions League loss against Chelsea (0: 2) and the damper in the district derby against Schalke (2: 2). After the last ten league games without defeat with 28 out of a possible 30 points, coach Edin Terzic’s team seems to be prepared for the game on April 1 in Munich.
On the other hand, the negative trend in Cologne continues despite the goal by Davie Selke (42nd). The poor record of just one point from the past five games raises concerns about an impending fall into the relegation zone.
Committed start with speed and playfulness
Despite the absences of Gregor Kobel, Salih Özcan, Julian Brandt, Karim Adeyemi and Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Emre Can’s suspension, BVB tried to control the game from the start. The committed start with a lot of speed and playfulness paid off early on. The first chance on goal gave the hosts the lead when Malen served his team-mate Guerreiro in an exemplary manner. The Portuguese, who had already met Schalke in the 2-2 draw in the derby on the previous day, was ordered back into midfield due to the shortage of personnel and made it 1-0 with a shot from close range into the far corner.
Just two minutes later, BVB had reason to celebrate again. The fact that Haller, who was ill with cancer last summer, ended his goal drought that had lasted since the beginning of February, was cheered particularly loudly in the stands. The goalscorer refined the worthwhile preparatory work by Reus and Guerreiro and executed ice-coldly from 14 meters.
An evening that goalkeeper Marvin Schwäbe would like to forget quickly: Cologne lost 1:6 in Dortmund.
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Image: AFP
FC were also close to a goal when BVB keeper Alexander Meyer deflected a shot from Sargis Adamyan (21st) to the post, but mostly just ran after it. In Dortmund’s offensive vortex, the overview was lost more and more. More goals from Reus and Malen rounded off Borussia’s splendid first half. The only blemish was the goal scored by Selke, where the BVB defense was punished for being careless. It was Cologne’s first goal after four goalless games.
In view of the clear lead, Dortmund took it easy after the restart. They kept Cologne away from their own goal with a lot of ball possession, but initially hardly created any chances. A free-kick from Mahmoud Dahoud on the bar, which Haller pushed over the line in a follow-up shot and thus scored two goals in a game in a BVB jersey for the first time, removed the last doubts about the well-deserved success. Reus rounded off Borussia’s strong performance with his second goal. The captain scored his 160th competitive goal for BVB, surpassing Michael Zorc and is now the Revierklub’s sole record goal scorer in professional football.
