Thanks to Felix Nmecha, Borussia Dortmund put the defeat in the Bundesliga classic behind them and maintained their strong record in the Champions League. Thanks to a strong final spurt, coach Niko Kovac’s team clearly won 4-2 (1-1) at FC Copenhagen led by former BVB professional Youssoufa Moukoko in the evening and has seven points after three match days.
In front of 35,058 spectators, double goalscorer Nmecha (20th minute/76th), Ramy Bensebaini (61st/foul penalty) and Fabio Silva (87th) scored the goals for the top German club, who showed a decent performance three days after the 1-2 defeat at FC Bayern. An own goal from Waldemar Anton (33′) only briefly rocked BVB. Viktor Dadason’s goal (90th + 1) for the Danes came when the game had already been decided. After a 4:4 at Juventus Turin and a 4:1 against Athletic Bilbao, Dortmund is heading for the all-important top eight position, with which they can save themselves an additional knockout round in the spring in the new mode. Kovac reacted three days after the 2-1 defeat at FC Bayern with five changes. Julian Brandt and Jobe Bellingham, who were recently frequently used as jokers, were given a chance from the start. Kovac praised the duo and reported to Dazn about his words to the 20-year-old Bellingham: “You are playing today because you can and because I have the utmost trust in you.”
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In fact, Bellingham made a winning contribution to the BVB game early on. After a pass from Serhou Guirassy, the Englishman passed it nicely to Nmecha, who scored a dream goal to give Dortmund an early lead. Much to the delight of the away fans, who were represented in large numbers in Denmark’s capital despite the boycott by several ultra groups.
Although the Danes had the first chance early on (6th) thanks to Viktor Claesson, Dortmund initially set the tone in the European Championship stadium, which was the scene of Christian Eriksen’s dramatic cardiac arrest in 2021. The axis around Bellingham and Nmecha controlled the center, where the hosts sorely missed ex-Dortmund player Thomas Delaney, who was missing due to injury.
But because BVB missed an early second goal, the game ended after about half an hour. In a central role for Copenhagen: Moukoko, who played for Dortmund from 2016 until this summer and was once considered a child prodigy. The 20-year-old striker received the trust of Jacob Neestrup for the game against his former club – and Moukoko did not disappoint.
The ex-Dortmunder had previously scored the equalizer, which was considered an Anton own goal. Moukoko was also active and busy away from the goal, and he also tested the confident Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel with his shots. The draw at half-time was fair, with Moukoko the most striking player of the first 45 minutes.
After the substitution, the youngest German World Cup player could have even become a goalscorer, but Bensebaini came in time with his tackle. A few minutes later, the Algerian also took responsibility up front: After Guirassy had his jersey pulled in the penalty area, Bensebaini grabbed the ball and coolly converted to take the lead again.
After that, Copenhagen became more offensive – and the game became more hectic. Moukoko fell on the edge of the penalty area, but there was no penalty, much to the displeasure of the Danish champions’ fans. When Nmecha scored for the second time a little later, the game was decided. In the end it happened in quick succession: New signing Silva scored for Dortmund to make it 4-1, and Dadason shortened the score again. Then it was over.
