Borussia Dortmund 7-1 Celtic: Three takeaways from dominant win in the UEFA Champions League

Borussia Dortmund marked their opening home game of the league phase of the Champions League with an emphatic 7-1 win over Celtic. While I thought BVB held a competitive advantage in this match, I never expected Dortmund to win by a six-goal margin. Celtic have begun their season strong with six wins from six games domestically, as well as a 5-1 win over Slovan Bratislava on CL matchday one. The team has a rich history and fan base so I expected this to be a competitive match. Dortmund were favorites, but I’ve been watching the Black and Yellows long enough to know that no opponent can be written off. Yet Borussia Dortmund utterly dominated Celtic.

The first-half was nothing short of exciting. When was the last time any of us saw Borussia Dortmund score five in a single half? There were two penalties awarded in the mix, but with the heavy pressure BVB piled on the Celtic defense, I’d argue the players forced these errors. Jamie Gittens would have surely scored the opener had Kasper Schmeichel not come off his line and tried to take the ball. Additionally, Karim Adeyemi scored his first Champions League hat-trick, all in one half! How can we forget that?

Karim Adeyemi looks like the player Dortmund wanted him to become

Based on his current form, its hard to believe Adeyemi didn’t find the net once in last year’s Bundesliga hindrunde. While some wrote him off, Karim did begin showing glimpses of brilliance toward the end of last season. Now, it’s clear he’s focused on football, and performing for his club. He’s already produced two Bundesliga goals and three assists in five appearances, and now he’s scored three in Europe’s premier competition. Adeyemi looks to be shaping into a stellar attacking player who should expect a call-up to the German national team’s senior squad in the near future if he can maintain his form. 

Unfortunately Karim’s evening was cut short by an apparent hamstring injury in the second minute of the second-half. It was clear immediately, as Adeyemi winced, held his leg, and eventually sat down. The young German has had injury trouble with his hamstring in the past, but stopped playing on Tuesday as soon as he noticed discomfort. We can hope this signifies the injury isn’t serious, but we’ll learn in the coming days for sure.