Borussia Dortmund is only one step away from the final at Wembley in the Champions League. BVB also had to fight for their luck against Paris St. Germain – in the truest sense of the word.
When Niclas Füllkrug was celebrated for his golden goal in the 1-0 win against Paris St. Germain in the 36th minute, Karim Adeyemi had already had three moments in which his teammates and the Borussia Dortmund fans celebrated him. In three situations, the winger rushed backwards for tens of meters at full speed and finally won the duel against his opponent near his own penalty area.
Dortmund overruns Paris
Füllkrug’s action may be the deciding factor on the scoreboard, but the result would not have been possible without the commitment shown by the entire BVB team, and of which Adeyemi was the prime example. And the statistics don’t lie: Dortmund ran ten kilometers more than the Parisian star ensemble, work defeated beauty, the BVB miscreants beat the PSG artists. Because every single player completed one kilometer more than his opponent.
“That’s a house number,” said Mats Hummels, who was voted best player of the match by UEFA, on “DAZN”. “But we also have to do that against this opponent. It was a great team performance where everyone helped each other to show their performance. It was a very grown-up and mature game from us.”
Hummels leads the Borussia bulwark
Hummels himself was also a big factor with numerous tackles and perfectly placed tackles against exceptional striker Kylian Mbappé. If the Frenchman, who has already scored 43 goals in competitive games this season, made dangerous moves, he had to move to the outside in order to escape Hummels, who was defending so strongly.
But it wasn’t just the 35-year-old who made the center a BVB bulwark, Nico Schlotterbeck was convincing at his side, who also prepared the Füllkrug goal with a great long pass. And there are also several players who are not often found in these places. Emre Can always acted as the third central defender, but sometimes it was also Marcel Sabitzer. And Jadon Sancho suddenly mutated into a defender on the outside.
Wochner and Walbrodt, Sportschau, May 1st, 2024 11:32 p.m
Important Kehl moment in Madrid
BVB, who are sure to qualify for the next Champions League season as fifth in the Bundesliga thanks to the first leg win, confirmed the impression of the season so far: If coach Edin Terzic’s team discovers the desire to fight, they are capable to beat any opponent.
In the quarter-finals, Dortmund had not yet discovered these virtues in the first leg against Atletico Madrid and allowed themselves to be run down by their opponents. Then there was that moment when sports director Sebastian Kehl got into a fight with Atletico coach Diego Simeone on the sidelines – the spark obviously spread to the team.
Against Paris it wasn’t all just fighting, tackling and running – BVB showed again that they have great strengths on the ball and could have scored even more goals. But he also needed luck in many situations in the second half. The double hit on the post by Mbappé and Achraf Hakimi (51′), Gregor Kobel’s brilliant save against Ousmane Dembélé (72′) or his free shot from eleven meters over the goal (80′).
“Only 90 minutes from Wembley”
But BVB fought for this luck; it didn’t just come to them. “We’re talking about the semi-finals in the Champions League, so it’s necessary to invest everything. That’s how you can earn your way to Wembley,” said Terzic on “DAZN”. Winning goal scorer Füllkrug admitted that his team had “suffered a lot”. “We’re now just 90 minutes from Wembley,” he added.
Sports show, May 2nd, 2024 12:20 a.m
With a 1-0 lead, Dortmund travel to Paris next week, Mbappé and Co.’s assault starts again, BVB has to suffer again to take this last step into the final. Incidentally, this suffering is not only rewarded with sporting success, but also with the highest level of recognition, as in the case of Adeyemi. He was substituted after 82 minutes in the first leg and received a standing ovation from the entire stadium.