FC Köln 1-1 Borussia Dortmund: Key Takeaways from frustrating draw
FC Köln and Borussia Dortmund were forced to share points on Sunday as the game between the two sides finished 1-1 at the RheinEnergieSTADION.
Another Bundesliga weekend has come and gone for Borussia Dortmund and the club find themselves stumbling over their own feet yet again. On Sunday, Die Schwarzgelben took on FC Köln in a match that held significance to both sides. For Köln, the prospect of taking anything away from the game was significant in the sense that it would keep them in the race for a European position come the end of the season. For Dortmund, a win was imperative for them to keep the pressure on Bayern Munich. The gap between first and second was 7 points coming into this game, and Dortmund had the chance to cut it back down to 4 points.
The game was intense right from the off. Both teams had something to prove and to gain coming into this match. Borussia Dortmund struck first, courtesy of a wonderful Jude Bellingham pass to Marius Wolf, whose run had many thinking it was Erling Haaland on the receiving end. The finish was deft, and eight minutes in Dortmund were on top.
Dortmund dominance wouldn’t last long, however. The first half saw the away side come under pressure from Köln, with the likes of Mark Uth and Jannes Horn delivering crosses into the box for Köln’s strike duo of Anthony Modeste and Sebastian Andersson to feed off of. Köln’s efforts proved fruitful in the 35th minute when Horn was given space to get the ball into the box. The ball met the head of Modeste who flicked it on for Andersson to drive it into the back of the net.
The second half saw Dortmund come to life with a host of big chances. But they were unable to finish their opportunities. The game ended in a draw, which is a far more favorable result than Köln would’ve expected, considering their extensive injury list. The result did however shed even more light on Dortmund’s struggles this season. Lets take a look at some of the key takeaways from this match.