Maxi Beier (5/10) – Maxi Beier played the entire second half of this match but failed to make much of an impact. He made a few recoveries and almost assisted a Gio Reyna goal but was nearly silent in attack.
Gio Reyna, Julian Duranville, Waldemar Anton, Ramy Bensebaini (N/A) – Reyna made a quick impact. He nearly scored off his first touch, and Duranville provided some fresh energy on the wing, but neither was significant enough to influence the game.
Niko Kovač (6/10) – Kovač approached this match pragmatically. He knew his squad held a three-goal advantage, so he set them up to ensure no goals were conceded and that Dortmund was successful in that endeavor. He made a halftime change when Gittens was struggling on the wing, and he didn’t wait to use his substitutes. Kovač took a more attacking approach in the second half, and I’d argue Dortmund deserved a 1-0 win, but the attacking output from BVB never quite materialized. There was nothing Kovač could have done about Guirassy’s missed penalty, and BVB had several clean shots from distance. Yet the chance creation seemed limited to play around the box, and not much inside of it. That needs to be addressed, but for now, Borussia Dortmund is through to the Last-Sixteen of the Champions League, and that’s what’s most important. This wasn’t the most exciting match to watch, but we earned a clean sheet and secured UCL advancement. For now, we have to be satisfied with that.