What we learned from Borussia Dortmund’s dominant derby win over Schalke

Borussia Dortmund pulled off a convincing win at the Westfalenstadion in the first Revierderby of the season, further pinning bitter rivals Schalke into the relegation zone.

Whenever Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04 take the field together, we get a fixture filled with intensity, grit, and explosive play that rarely ends goalless. It is a game that is often fueled two of the most passionate fanbases in Germany, and European football as a whole, and is often viewed as one of the biggest games on the German football calendar for these reasons.

This derby, however, was far from it’s usual format. While the game wasn’t a “geisterspiel”, a term we are still getting used to due to the ghost like nature of stadiums devoid of fans, there were only some 300 odd fans allowed in the stadium for the game, which muted what surely would’ve been a rapturous atmosphere otherwise.

Despite the low number of supporters due to COVID-19 restrictions in Germany, both teams came into the game with the expected will to perform and passion to win it for their side of the Ruhr. While Schalke seemed to put on a stronger defensive display against the Black and Yellows in the first half, Die Schwarzgelben knew they had to make amends for their midweek defeat to Lazio, and they did so by putting three goals past their bitter rivals in the second half to seal the game and the three points. Lets take a look at some of the key takeaways from this game.