Borussia Dortmund were narrow winners in a goal filled thriller against Italian side Atalanta. After jumping to an early lead and dominating much of the first half, the hosts almost put the tie in doubt by letting Atalanta score twice. But a Michy Batshuayi helped them secure a narrow lead going into their second leg.
The win is a much-needed home result as Borussia Dortmund attempt to move forward in their Europa League round of 32 tie. Here are the player ratings for Borussia Dortmund players from the game:
Roman Burki (5/10)
Although Burki by no means was solely at fault for either of Atalanta’s goals he could have done much better on both of them. The first was a 1v1 with Atalanta’s Josip Ilicic from almost to touch-line. The play should never have gotten to this point but Burki’s angle was off and he showed enough of the net for Ilicic to slide it by him. The second goal again, not his fault but his angle on the shot was poor. As a result he was forced into pushing the ball to the far side of the 6 yard box with Ilicic steaming in again to tap the ball home unmarked.
Lukasz Piszczek (6/10)
Piszczek was very mobile up and down the right flank today, playing a wonderful slicing ball into the path of Andre Schürrle for Dortmund’s first goal. Although he’s not his younger self he’s still proving to be a very reliable stalwart at right back.
Sokratis (6/10)
Sokratis’ speed, aggression and competitiveness were on full display in Dortmund’s win today. After a break on the weekend to make way for Manuel Akanji’s debut, Sokratis was back to controlling the Borussia Dortmund back-line today. He had a couple very timely and vital interceptions that stopped Atalanta from breaking through on Burki.
Ömer Toprak (7/10)
Toprak has been the biggest beneficiary of the coaching change. Since Stöger took over Toprak has played every minute of every game. He has been enjoying a nice spell of form recently and although today didn’t stack up against his recent performances he was still solid throughout the 90 minutes. His no nonsense tackles made it difficult for Atalanta to break through.
Jeremy Toljan (4/10)
A player who seemed to have turned the corner under Peter Stöger did not enjoy his time on the pitch today. Largely to blame for both of Atalanta’s goals, Toljan’s confidence seemed to be shot. The first goal Toljan was half covering for Toprak in the middle and allowed for too much separation from the player he’s marking out wide. Atalanta’s Spinnazola was able to swing a cross over to their wide man Ilicic.
Toljan was caught and couldn’t intercept the cross in time, taking himself out of the play jumping for a ball that was much too high to reach and Atalanta was able to claw one back. The second goal was a rebound off a Burki save tapped home by Ilicic 5 minutes after he tied it up. Toljan started his run about 5 yards ahead of Ilicic and by the time the ball was saved across goal he had stopped running allowing the Atalanta player to tap the ball in to take the lead.
Julian Weigl (6/10)
In a recent interview Hans-Jaochim Watzke stated Borussia Dortmund were in need of a a player, specifically mentioning Weigl, to be more evil. Julian Weigl seemed to take that to heart today, refusing to shy away from putting in a tackle. He even put in a couple dangerous tackles already on a yellow card. Weigl also picked up his third yellow in a UEFA competition and will miss the second leg.
Gonzalo Castro (5/10)
Castro was remarkably mediocre in today’s game, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to most BVB fans. One of the most frustrating players to watch by far, one game he’ll put in a world beater performance and then he will disappear from existence for the next month. His performance today did nothing to indicate he was on his way to finding his form.
Marco Reus (6/10)
Every single BVB fans heart leaps every time they see Marco Reus’ name on the team sheet. He’s been deprived of so many minutes that we all crave for him to play every possible minute when he returns to health. Today might have been a case of too much too soon returning from injury. Making his second straight start after an 8 month layoff didn’t yield the same results as the first start.
There were a few bright spots throughout the performance, he was sent in on a breakaway early in the game, narrowly missing the far post. As well as a lovely combination play with Michy Batshuayi in the opponents 6 yard box which ended up just out of the reach of Christian Pulisic. Regardless, we are all very happy to see Rolls Reus back in action.
Christian Pulisic (6/10)
Not the best game for Captain America in front of the Dortmund faithful. He was fairly invisible for a player who spent 85 minutes on the pitch. There were a couple of moments where he showed his explosiveness and pace to squeeze past a defender. Although we need to remember he’s only 19, it’s hard not to expect more when we’ve seen what he’s capable of.
André Schürrle (7/10)
WHO IS THIS MAN AND WHAT HAS HE DONE WITH ANDRÉ SCHÜRRLE?!?!
This makes it 3 games in a row for Schürrle who is enjoying an exceptional run in form. In a matter of weeks he has gone from a player on his way out to one of the main catalysts in Dortmund’s attack. Schürrle was the recipient of an excellent through ball from Lukasz Piszczek for his goal but his goal came down to good old effort. Not the best first touch as the ball got a bit away from him but he would not be denied.
He was also critical in Dortmund scoring their second goal, intercepting a quick free kick to send Götze into space who found Batshuayi and belted one past the Atalanta keeper. He has been one of Dortmund’s best players in recent games and we can only hope it continues!
Michy Batshuayi (10/10)
The guy just can’t stop scoring… 5 goals in 3 games and he’s showing no sign of stopping. Now that we’ve gotten to see a bit more of him, one of the things that stands out is how he’s scoring his goals in different ways. Not only poaching goals but he is becoming more and more involved in the build up play which helps take some of the load off of others. His combination of size, speed and technical ability was on full display against Atalanta.
He was creating opportunities and time and space for him and his teammates all over the pitch. He played a massive part in Dortmund’s first goal, coming all the way back to about 30 or 35 yards out from Dortmund’s goal to strip the Atalanta player of the ball. Turning that change in possession into a counter attack and finding Lukasz Piszczek in acres of space on the right-wing to whip the ball into Schürrle.
Oh yeah… and he scored twice, almost forgot to mention that.
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Substitutes
Mario Götze (8/10)
Mario Götze was brought on in the 62nd minute for Marco Reus, it seems we’ll have to wait at least another game to see the two reunited on the pitch. After being scored on twice in 5 minutes, Götze came on and instantly shifted the momentum of the game. Within 3 minutes of being on the pitch he had an assist on a Michy Batshuayi goal. He would also get the assist on the game winning goal in stoppage time. It can’t be said enough how important Götze is to Dortmund’s success this year and in the future.
Mahmoud Dahoud (N/R)
The fact that he only came on in the last ten minutes saves him from a bad rating. Once again, his passes were wayward and clumsy. He is not doing himself any favors, despite a midfield spot clearly being there for the taking.