After finishing fourth last season, new manager Lucien Favre has taken on the task of making Borussia Dortmund contenders again. 29 points; that was the difference between Dortmund and Bayern Munich last season. Favre is expected to be the man to turn things around and his first Bundesliga game in charge of his new team was against RB Leipzig at the Signal Iduna Park.
What We Learned From Dortmund’s Win Over Leipzig
As you already know from the title, Dortmund walked away with the win in their first home game of the new season. Trailing early, Favre’s team went behind in the opening minute of the game. Jean-Kévin Augustin took advantage of some sloppy play, giving RB Leipzig a shock lead. However, Dortmund bounced back scoring four unanswered goals, securing all three points.
Despite the early setback, Dortmund’s overall performance was solid.
Defensive Problems
Conceding after just 31 seconds, Dortmund’s back four looked shaky throughout. The two centre-backs, Abdou Diallo and Manuel Akanji, struggled early and didn’t improve until the game settled down towards the hour mark. Similar to Leipzig’s defenders, the primary reason for these issues is inexperience. Both teams fielded young centre-backs and it’s fair to say it cost both sides.
One key highlight for Dortmund looking forward was the superb performance by goalkeeper Roman Bürki. The Swiss keeper may have conceded early but recovered well to put in an overall great performance.
Midfield Superiority
As we’ve seen in previous seasons, Borussia Dortmund started the game with a three-man midfield. This was the key to today’s victory. Led by Belgium international Axel Witsel, the midfield was impressive from start to finish. Mahmoud Dahoud and Thomas Delaney played alongside Witsel, with all three playing a key role. Dahoud joined Dortmund last season from Borussia Mönchengladbach but underwhelmed in his first season. His manager during his time with Mönchengladbach was Lucien Favre. Favre will hope to get the most out of Dahoud this season, something neither Peter Bosz or Peter Stöger could do last season.
On Sunday, Dahoud scored his first ever Bundesliga goal for the club. Heading in the equaliser, Dahoud thrived all afternoon playing alongside Witsel and Delaney.
Delaney was brought in this summer to add toughness and work ethic to the Dortmund midfield. On Sunday, he gave his new team everything they wanted to see, with the Danish midfielder providing energy, hard work and smart decision making throughout. It was easy to see that Delaney will play a key role all season for a Dortmund team looking to compete for more than just fourth place.
Captain Fantastic – Marco Reus Joins the 100 Club
When people talk about Borussia Dortmund, one name always comes up. Marco Reus is a club legend whose career has been plagued by injuries. Recently named club captain, Reus is now the team’s leader going forward. On Sunday against RB Leipzig, Reus reached an amazing milestone, especially when considering his injury history. Scoring the fourth and final goal in stoppage time, Reus joined the 100 club. The German legend now has 100 goals and 54 assists in 234 games. Reus has missed a lot of games over the years but that hasn’t stopped him from making an incredible impact on the Bundesliga in what will go down as one of the best careers in Dortmund history.
It’s unlikely this Dortmund team can compete for the title this season, with Bayern the clear favourites once again. Favre will need time to get his defence sorted out and find the right balance going forward. Sunday’s 4-1 win was a good first step, as Dortmund look set to compete for a top-four spot once again this season.
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