Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Borussia Monchengladbach: 3 Reasons why the hosts won | Bundesliga 2019/2020
Borussia Dortmund scraped past Borussia Monchengladbach 1-0 in an entertaining encounter at the Signal Iduna Park. The victory catapulted the hosts to 4th spot while the defeat rid the visitors of an opportunity to go clear at the perch of the table.
The game started off frenetically with both sides hassling and harrying the other, hoping for an early mistake. However, the game settled down as the clock ticked by, meaning that chances were at a premium. Yet, when those opened up, Monchengladbach were guilty of spurning them.
After the restart, Dortmund looked much more adventurous and their perseverance paid off when Marco Reus escaped the attention of the defenders before arrowing the ball into the back of the net from a relatively tight angle.
The visitors tried to get back into the game courtesy a flurry of attacks deep into the game but it went in vain as the home side managed to see the game off.
Here is a look at the three reasons that ensured a Dortmund victory.
#3 Roman Burki’s splendid first half-display
For Borussia Monchengladbach’s visit, Dortmund fielded a make-shift defence that comprised Julian Weigl and Mats Hummels as the centre-back pairing and Manuel Akanji at right-back. Subsequently, plenty expected the away side to cause more than a furrowed brow or two.
The visitors started the game extremely strongly and pressed the hosts high up the pitch, meaning that Lucien Favre’s men were denied the freedom, time and space to build up play methodically.
In the process, the away side generated a head of steam, thereby creating an early chance for Breel Embolo. The striker was played through courtesy a sublime through-ball but his attempted shimmy past Roman Burki was thwarted expertly by the latter.
A few minutes later, the Swiss goalkeeper was on hand to parry Stefan Lainer’s snap shot at the back post. However, despite not scoring, the visitors kept putting the hosts under the cosh
The incessant pressure carved out another opening when an errant back-pass fell into Embolo’s path. The Swiss forward tried to manoeuvre the ball past Burki but the keeper flung out his right leg to stop his countryman in his tracks.
Thus, through the course of the opening 45 minutes, Burki had proven his worth and laid the ideal platform for Dortmund to post a vital victory.
And, even though the home side dominated after the restart, things could’ve been very different had Monchengladbach managed to ripple the net in the first half.