For the second Champions League match in a row, Borussia Dortmund put up four goals. Except this time, they managed to avoid conceding four as well, coming away as 4-1 winners against Athletic Bilbao at the Westfalenstadion
tonight. A Daniel Svensson goal gave BVB the advantage after half an hour, but it was second-half goals from Carney Chukwuemeka, Serhou Guirassy, and Julian Brandt that put the game to bed. Bilbao did pull one back, through Gorka Guruzeta, but Dortmund’s defense held strong under some pressure in the second half to help BVB earn all three points.
The scoreline definitely flatters BVB a little. It was a relatively tight, competitive game that Dortmund had the edge in, but it wasn’t worthy of a 4-1 drubbing. But Dortmund always looked the more dangerous, and when the chances fell, they did well to put them away.
Here are the nominations for Man of the Match in BVB’s 4-1 win against Athletic Bilbao:
Karim Adeyemi
In the first half, it seemed like everything was running through Adeyemi. Every time he picked up the ball, he terrorized Bilbao’s defense. He did really well to set up Daniel Svensson to open the scoring, and he probably deserved more from a really strong performance.
Daniel Svensson
Svensson was lively up and down the left wing throughout the game and was rewarded with a goal for his troubles.
Carney Chukwuemeka
If Adeyemi was BVB’s most dangerous offensive threat tonight, Chukwuemeka wasn’t far behind. He looked lively every time he picked up the ball, and while the final ball wasn’t quite there in and around the final third, he did really well with his goal. A fit Chukwuemeka would be huge for Dortmund.
Serhou Guirassy
A goal and an assist are a solid return for any striker. Sure, Guirassy’s goal was very much about him being in the right place at the right time, but the assist was all his own doing, and I thought he was making lots of good runs throughout the game.
Your Thoughts?
Who was your man of the match tonight? Let us know in the comments.
