Borussia Dortmund: Player ratings from disastrous choke against Schalke

Borussia Dortmund blew a 4-0 lead to draw 4-4 against Schalke at home. Here are the player ratings for Peter Bosz’s side from the game.

Roman Weidenfeller (6/10)

It’s tough to give much credit to the keeper when his team let in four goals, but by and large the blame falls on Weidenfeller’s defenders. Weidenfeller made a few stops throughout the match, including a magnificent save in the 73rd minute, knocking the ball off the woodwork. His main error was conceding the first goal, where he was out of position. Guido Burgstaller took full advantage with a well-placed header.

Marcel Schmelzer (5/10)

It wasn’t a perfect showing from the captain by any means. Schmelzer wasn’t fully comfortable in his left center-back role, but made a number of critical interceptions as the Dortmund defense was crumbling in the second half.

Ömer Toprak (3/10)

It was an atrocious showing from Toprak, who should be at least partially blamed for Schalke’s second and fourth goals. In the 64th minute, Dortmund lost the ball on the right side of the pitch, and Toprak failed to pressure Konoplyanka enough, allowing the winger to cross the ball into the box for an easy goal. Later in the game, Naldo easily beat Toprak in an aerial duel in Dortmund’s box to earn Schalke a draw in the dying moments.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos (6/10)

Sokratis was an absolute wall throughout the game. He completed five tackles, per whoscored.com, but was also good in the air. Sokratis was easily Dortmund’s best defender throughout the 90 minutes, and was the only one who didn’t completely implode in the second half. Unfortunately, his game was marred a bit by Schalke’s first goal. Benjamin Stambouli launched a pinpoint accurate long ball behind Dortmund’s back line. Sokratis was slow to respond, and Burgstaller took the chance to put Schalke on the scoresheet.

Raphaël Guerreiro (8/10)

This was the best game we’ve seen from Guerreiro since he’s returned from injury. His volley to put Dortmund up 4-0 in the 25th minute was nothing short of sublime. He repeatedly linked up with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mario Götze to slice through Schalke’s defense. In addition, Guerreiro’s energy in the second half certainly helped keep Dortmund from collapsing entirely. It was wonderful to see him playing so well again. Should be a regular starter.

Nuri Sahin (5/10)

Sahin was quite good in the first half. His attempted shot in the first half set up Aubameyang for Dortmund’s opening goal, and his perfectly placed free kick led to Stambouli’s own-goal for Dortmund’s second. Unfortunately, his defensive contribution was lacking in the second half. It was his poor positioning that allowed Amine Harit to easily dispatch Schalke’s second goal in the 65th minute.

Julian Weigl (4/10)

Weigl failed to get involved in the game in any meaningful way. His pass completion percentage was 64%, easily the lowest of all of Dortmund’s outfield players, per whoscored.com. That’s a brutal performance from a player whose role is to provide consistent passing and circulation. Weigl has struggled throughout the season, but his game today was especially poor. Perhaps Peter Bosz should also take some blame for the way he has used Weigl this season.

Christian Pulisic (6/10)

Pulisic was dangerous throughout the first half, even playing in a more defensive wing-back position. He had a lovely cross or two, and generally added energy to the side. When Aubameyang got sent off in the 72nd minute, Pulisic became the de facto center forward. Dortmund failed to threaten at all in the second half, but Pulisic made plenty of thankless runs, both with and without the ball. His energy and determination helped take some of the pressure off his overwhelmed defense.

Mario Götze (8/10)

Götze was played in a more attacking role against Schalke, and he shone brilliantly. He wreaked havoc on Schalke throughout the first half, and his header to put Borussia Dortmund 3-0 up in the 20th minute was fantastic. Götze’s link up play with Guerreiro was particularly fun to watch. Hopefully, their chemistry and creativity will continue to build throughout the season.

Andriy Yarmolenko (6/10)

Like the rest of the Borussia Dortmund team, Yarmolenko was aggressive in the first half. He and Aubameyang worked well together, particularly in creating the chance that led to Guerreiro’s magnificent volley. Bosz’s decision to take Yarmolenko off so early is certainly questionable, as Dortmund’s offense was completely anemic in the second half.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (7/10)

This was the best game we’ve seen from Aubameyang in months. He scored Dortmund’s opener and provided the exquisite assist for Götze’s goal. In addition, he caused all sorts of chaos in Schalke’s box by linking up cleverly with his midfielders.

Unfortunately, Aubameyang committed a silly foul on Harit in the 72nd minute, and received a second yellow card. Aubameyang will feel hard done by it, considering a number of Schalke players committed far worse challenges than he did. Regardless, the sending off certainly puts a blemish on Aubameyang’s otherwise strong performance.

Substitutes

Dan-Axel Zagadou (3/10)

After being subbed on late in the second half, Zagadou had an abysmal 15 minutes on the pitch. Daniel Caligiuri dribbled past him far too easily and whipped a shot inside the far post for Schalke’s third goal. Less than 10 minutes later, Zagadou completely lost Naldo on a Schalke corner kick. Naldo proceeded to leap over Toprak and equalize the game for his side. No question that Zagadou is still developing, but this is a game he’ll want to forget sooner rather than later.

Marc Bartra and Gonzalo Castro (NR)

These substitutes had little impact on the game.

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Borussia Dortmund 4-4 Schalke: Player ratings from disastrous choke against Schalke

By Asher Woodbury | Nov 25, 2017