A win would have put Borussia Dortmund top of the Bundesliga but despite taking the lead against FC Köln at the RheinEnergieStadion, they again capitulated. It’s the third time BVB have conceded three goals in six league games this season, all of which came when Mats Hummels wasn’t on the pitch. The 33-year-old missed today’s game with a cold. BVB were also without Gregor Kobel and Marco Reus. The latter is expected to return to training shortly in what’s an already packed October schedule with nine games in 29 days.
Julian Brandt opened the scoring for the visitors before Florian Kainz, Steffen Tigges and Dejan Ljubicic gave the Billy Goats a 3-1 lead. Tom Rothe brought a goal back with a deflected cross but were unable to secure a point. It’s now Borussia Dortmund’s third Bundesliga defeat in eight games.
Borussia Dortmund: 2 (Brandt, Rothe)
Alexander Meyer, 5
Thomas Meunier, 4
Niklas Süle, 5 – Failed to win a single ground duel but did recover well to put pressure on Florian Dietz. The most accurate passer (96%) to play 45 minutes or more but didn’t put in a single challenge. Hasn’t quite established himself within the BVB squad as of yet.
Nico Schlotterbeck, 6
Raphaël Guerreiro, 4
Salih Özcan, 5
Jude Bellingham, 7 – Captain in the absence of Marco Reus and Mats Hummels, the Englishman was unable to impose himself on the game but was Borussia Dortmund’s best player. 3 key passes and 1 assist, also excellent in the duels.
Karim Adeyemi, 6
Julian Brandt, 6 – Completed 86% of his passes and opened the scoring for Borussia Dortmund, drifting between FC Köln’s central-defenders and remained composed inside the area to score. Has been one of BVB’s most consistent performers this season and continues to play well under Edin Terzic.
Donyell Malen, 5 – An xG of 0.54, had the Dutchman been able to finish then Borussia Dortmund could have been two or three ahead at the break with little chance of an FC Köln comeback. Only had 33 touches in 77 minutes and spurned two big chances. Poor.
Anthony Modeste, 3 – The least touches (27) of any outfield player to play 90 minutes. Improved when Thorgan Hazard was introduced but again isolated up front. Won 6/7 of his aerial duels but only 1/6 of his ground duels. Hasn’t clicked so far.
Others: Thorgan Hazard (6), Youssoufa Moukoko (5), Emre Can (-), Tom Rothe (-)
FC Köln: 3 (Kainz, Tigges, Ljubicic)
Marvin Schwäbe, 8 – Has established himself after displacing Timo Horn and FC Köln’s undisputed No. 1. An early fumble could have ended badly but redeemed himself. Made 7 saves and was also accurate with his distribution. Another excellent performance.
Benno Schmitz, 6
Luca Kilian, 6
Timo Hübers, 7
Jonas Hector, 7
Ellyes Skhiri, 6
Dejan Ljubicic, 8 – Created 5 chances against Borussia Dortmund and always looked to progress the ball forward. Driving from midfield, caused Süle and Schlotterbeck to drop deeper which in turn brought others into play. Superb goal for Köln’s third of the afternoon.
Linton Maina, 7
Ondrej Duda, 5
Florian Kainz, 7 – Fast becoming Steffen Baumgart’s first name in the starting XI. His assist today takes his tally to four in the Bundesliga, adding to his three goals in eight games. The Austrian continues to thrive in a free role despite being deployed on the left flank.
Steffen Tigges, 6
Others: Eric Martel (-), Denis Huseinbasic (6), Kingsley Schindler (-), Sargis Adamyan (-), Florian Dietz (-)
GGFN | Daniel Pinder
