Match Report: Spirited second half comeback helps Borussia Dortmund go top

Borussia Dortmund against Leverkusen on Matchday 6 was a tale of two halves. Lucien Favre’s men turned a 2-0 deficit into a 4-2 win, scoring all 4 goals in the second half.

The first half although consisting of two Leverkusen goals was very uneventful. Borussia Dortmund went down 1-0 when not one but two defenders, Akanji and Hakimi stumbled and fell over on a Leverkusen counter-attack. Mitchell Weiser made the most of a wasted cross by smashing home a volley from outside the 18 yard box. Leverkusen’s second goal was all down to Dortmund’s inability to clear the ball. Abdou Diallo and Dan-Axel Zagadou both had chances to clear the ball before it ultimately fell to Jonathan Tah all alone at the 6 yard box. Dortmund really struggled to create anything in the final third going forward.

The second half seemed to be a brand new game, entirely open with lots of chances at both ends. Mo Dahoud was brought on at half time to help transition the ball quicker up the field as Dortmund was playing catch up. Chance after chance both teams took their turns counter-attacking as Dortmund desperately tried to get back into the game, with Leverkusen trying to seal the 3 points. Lucas Alario had Leverkusen’s best chance of the second half as he hit the post on an exceptional left footed shot. Had that gone in, Dortmund likely wouldn’t have been able to turn the game around.

Borussia Dortmund got their first breath of life when Jacob Brunn Larsen tapped in a loose ball to claw one back. Once that first Dortmund goal went in, you knew there was going to be more to come as both teams alternated chances. Jadon “Supersub” Sancho came on in the 68th minute and as he always does, had an immediate impact. He found Marco Reus open in the 18 yard box to fire home within a minute of being subbed on. Seriously, the kid is so good. Every time he is subbed on he seems to be making the difference for Dortmund.

In the final ten minutes Paco Alcacer scored scored the winner and then sealed the game with a his second. His first goal was a thing of beauty. There must have been at least 8-10 one touch passes made around Leverkusen’s 18 yard box before Alcacer swung the ball out wide and charged the net. Achraf Hakimi sent in a delightful cross to find Alcacer’s run for him to tap it home. Jadon Sancho would earn another assist as he sent Alcacer in alone to seal the game in the 93rd minute.

After a very frustrating first half Borussia Dortmund turned the game around with their impressive attacking play to slide into first place on matchday 6. Today’s game once again showed how important Paco Alcacer will be for Borussia Dortmund this year. While Jadon Sancho continues to absolutely dazzle as the supersub. He is top of the league for assists (5), without starting a single Bundesliga game.

Top of the table!

HEJA BVB