Sebastian Kehl praises Ian Maatsen after encouraging Borussia Dortmund debut

Sebastian Kehl was delighted with Ian Maatsen's impact during his Borussia Dortmund debut against SV Darmstadt on Saturday.

Just over 24 hours after completing his loan move from Chelsea to Borussia Dortmund, Ian Maatsen was named in the starting XI by Edin Terzic for the Bundesliga clash against Darmstadt. Such was the urgency at left-back, with Julian Ryerson sidelined due to injury and Ramy Bensebaini away on international duty with Algeria at the Africa Cup of Nations.

But Maatsen showed a good account of himself on his Borussia Dortmund debut, showing encouraging glimpses of what fans can expect. The 21 year old played with great energy and made a number of impressive forward runs. He linked up well with his teammates for the most part, and also came close to setting up a goal for Julian Brandt in the first-half.

Sebastian Kehl was full of praise of Maatsen after the game, and lauded his impressive decision making and composure on the ball. "Ian Maatsen was very calm, had a lot of composure in possession, played great football and was constantly involved in our transition play. You could sense that he was nervous. You could also see his intelligence. It was a very good decision to play him from the start," the BVB sporting director told Sky Sport.

The two full-back positions were areas of concern for Borussia Dortmund in the first half of the season. And the hope will be that the arrival of Ian Maatsen can help change that in the coming months.