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Dortmund Kick Off Brilliantly in 2018

By Yahya Alikhan

LA LINEA, SPAIN - JANUARY 06: Alexander Isak of Borussia Dortmund celebrates scoring the opening goal with his team mates during the friendly match between Borussia Dortmund and Fortuna Duesseldorf as part of the training camp at the Estadio Municipal De La Linea on January 06, 2018 in La Linea, Spain. (Photo by Alexandre Simoes/Borussia Dortmund/Getty Images)
LA LINEA, SPAIN - JANUARY 06: Alexander Isak of Borussia Dortmund celebrates scoring the opening goal with his team mates during the friendly match between Borussia Dortmund and Fortuna Duesseldorf as part of the training camp at the Estadio Municipal De La Linea on January 06, 2018 in La Linea, Spain. (Photo by Alexandre Simoes/Borussia Dortmund/Getty Images) /
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Borussia Dortmund kicked off 2018 with a comprehensive victory in a friendly against Fortuna Düsseldorf. The 2-0 victory doesn’t reflect the brilliant performance by the players on a beautiful day in Marbella.

The preseason training camp has had plenty of players missing such as Christian Pulisic, Lukasz Piszczek, Roman Burki, and Marcel Schmelzer. But plenty of players have made a return to training including Erik Durm, Gonzalo Castro, Mario Gotze, and the much anticipated Marco Reus. Pierre Emerick Aubameyang later joined the team after his third-place finish in the African Player of the Year award in Accra, Ghana. With all these names excluded from the first team, it gave youngsters such as Isak and Sancho an opportunity to start for Dortmund.

Borussia Dortmund vs Fortuna Düsseldorf

The first game of 2018 showed a brilliant Dortmund side completely brush away their opposition in their first friendly match. A 2-0 victory against Düsseldorf should boost their confidence for the coming matches.

line-ups

Borussia Dortmund: Weidenfeller – Toljan, Sokratis, Subotic, Guerreiro – Dahoud, Sahin – Sancho, Kagawa, Yarmolenko – Schürrle
Substitutes: Reimann, Toprak, Weigl, Durm, Bartra, Isak
Absentees: Bürki (cold), Schmelzer (calf), Pulisic (shin), Reus (match fitness), Götze (ankle), Piszczek (match fitness), Castro (ankle), Philipp (knee), Aubameyang, Zagadou (individual training)
Coach: Peter Stöger

Fortuna Düsseldorf: Wiesner – Zimmer, Ayhan, Hoffmann, Schmitz – Neuhaus, Sobottka – Raman, Nielsen, Lovren – Kujovic
Absentees: Rensing (hip)
Coach: Friedhelm Funkel

Individual Performances:

Dortmund’s victory was inspired by a set of players who absolutely controlled the game causing problems against Düsseldorf.

Andriy Yarmalenko:

Probably the best man on the pitch causing huge headaches with his blistering pace and exceptional dribbling.  Constantly pushing forward and linking up with teammates such as Shinji Kagawa and Julian Weigl. Assisting both goals with a right footed shot that was deflected to Isak who made it 1-0. And then immediately pushed forward after Weigl won the ball back and crafted a lovely pass to Kagawa to make it 2-0.

Shinji Kagawa:

A masterclass performance by the Japenese international in the midfield. Shinji Kagawa led the midfield with his magnificent passing, vision, dribbling, and positioning. His link-up plays with Yaramlenko created great offensive pressure which led to Dortmund keeping the ball in the opposition’s half for the majority of the game. Kagawa doubled the lead after Dortmund quickly capitalized on an error from an error by the opposition.

Jadon Sancho:

The most exciting man to watch today was the young and energetic Jadon Sancho. The ex-Manchester City man was taking player after player, with such confidence creating solid chances and plays for Dortmund. Despite not getting a goal or assist, Sancho completed a full 90 minutes and made full use of it showing just how dangerous he can be. With a little more experience and game time, Sancho can easily become a starter in an already dangerous Dortmund midfield.

Schurrle Out?

Already wanted by various English clubs such as West Ham and Everton Schurrle’s time at the Westfalenstadion looks to come to a close. A poor performance today showed exactly why Dortmund should consider letting him go if he doesn’t live up to his price tag.

Guerreiro Injury Scare:

Raphael Guerreiro picked up a knock in the 11th minute of the game which saw him replaced by Marc Bartra. No word yet on his condition but an injury before the season resumes would affect an already injury-plagued Dortmund.

Solid At The Back:

A brilliant display upfront overshadowed the brilliant work done by the defenders at the back. Dortmund’s defence had been struggling under Peter Bosz and it was vital to improve it for the second half of the season under Peter Stoger. And that’s what Stoger has done today with a brilliant performance from the defence who hardly let the opposition have a shot on goal let alone enter Dortmund’s box. Erik Durm made a return to the side after a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a hip injury.

The Black and Yellows start 2018 with a solid performance despite not having any of their big names. Peter Stoger is continuing to build on his good start and resurface Dortmund from their poor run under Peter Bosz. Dortmund play SV Zulte Waregem and the continue their Bundesliga season with a home game against VFL Wolfsburg.

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