VfB Stuttgart 0-4 Borussia Dortmund
It’s fair to say that Borussia Dortmund are for real now.
There were likely early-season doubts as to whether this team would be able to continue playing such a high level of football now that everyone is settled into the season. However, the current Bundesliga leaders didn’t hold back in showing that the league is theirs to lose now.
They thumped Stuttgart so hard that they made their hosts look like a 2.Bundesliga side. The number of quality plays made by the BVB throughout the 90-minute stretch is something we cannot easily scoff at.
If Bayern Munich don’t step up their game, we could see this result as the starting point of Dortmund’s rampage through the German top flight.
Highlights of the game
Borussia Dortmund came into this game as heavy favourites, and Stuttgart braced themselves for a long afternoon full of Bundesliga 2018 highlights in favour of the BVB. What they didn’t anticipate was that one of the club’s younger stars would do a number on them within the first five minutes.
Dortmund started a piercing run on the left in the third minute, and Marco Reus tried setting Spanish star Paco Alcacer for an early goal. A Stuttgart defender deflected the ball straight to right winger Jadon Sancho, and the Englishman fired a deflected shot that caught Ron-Robert Zieler off-guard.
Die Roten did everything they can to break the BVB defence and get an equaliser. They tried breaking through the middle, but Axel Witsel’s box-to-box play ensured that they wouldn’t be able to challenge the goal as cleanly as they would have liked.
Stuttgart got a couple of corners due to their attack-oriented 4-3-3 tactic, but they weren’t able to come up with good replies to the Dortmund attack. Meanwhile, they had to do a bit of roughhousing and commit to sliding tackles in order to stop the BVB’s momentum.
The sheer difference in class was once again on display in the 23rd minute when Marco Reus got his first goal of the day. The BVB started a blitzing attack on the right, and Lukasz Piszczek was inside the penalty box. He made a low cross to Reus, and the captain powered a shot that Zieler could not spill outwards.
The black-and-yellow nightmare didn’t end there when Alcacer got his goal two minutes later. Dortmund’s high pressing forced an error on the hosts, and the star loanee from Barcelona saw himself with the ball and little to no Stuttgart resistance. He took his time and chipped the ball. It beautifully floated over the keeper and into the empty net.
Content that they have built such a huge gap between themselves and their hosts, the BVB let off the gas for the bit. While they were still playing beautiful passing football, Dortmund wouldn’t look threatening enough until the end of the first half.
The second half saw more attacking purpose from Stuttgart as Markus Weinzierl tried to will his lads to make a huge second-half comeback and upset the Stuttgart vs Dortmund betting odds.
His call for action was well-received by his players as they were able to stage strong attacks early in the reset. Christian Gentner was able to get to a rebound from a 48th-minute corner, but his subsequent strike went well over the bar.
Mario Gomez had the best chance to score for Die Roten when he was the first to get onto a loose pass inside the box. He fired a beautiful shot towards the bottom-left corner, but Roman Burki was more than able to save the shot.
That turned out to be the final dangerous shot attempt for Stuttgart as the BVB were able to adjust to their new attacking patterns and take control of the game completely. Borussia Dortmund were as efficient as a German supercar: they were taking control of possession, making great passes and frustrating the opposing defence.
Maximilian Philipp decided to rub salt and lemon juice to the wounds of the 59,000 devastated fans at the Mercedes-Benz Arena when he was set up to run free by Christian Pulisic on the right wing during the 85th minute. He then cut inside and made a powerful strike towards the top-left corner of the goalmouth. There was no way Zieler could have saved that.
Benjamin Pavard tried to duplicate his World Cup heroics by getting a consolation goal late in the game, but his efforts were thwarted by a tight Dortmund backline. Fortunately for the suffering fans, Manuel Grafe decided to show mercy and only called for one minute of additional time.
Key statistics
Borussia Dortmund are on a great offensive streak as they have won their last four games by scoring at least four goals. They are now at the top of the Bundesliga table with 27 goals scored, 12 more than defending Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.
Of course, the attacking end isn’t the only part of the Dortmund team that is deserving of praise. Burki made five quality saves to help the BVB keep an all-impressive clean sheet. While they weren’t entirely efficient on the attacking end, the fact that they have handed Stuttgart their biggest loss in the early Bundesliga season is something fans can celebrate about.
What’s next?
The SBOBET Bundesliga fans are waiting with anticipation for Dortmund’s upcoming clash with Hertha Berlin. The sixth-place club may have split the honours in their game with Mainz, but the fact that they beat Bayern Munich 2-0 makes this game an exciting one to watch.
Stuttgart will be hoping to stop the skid against Hoffenheim, but Julian Nagelsmann wants his final year with Die Kraichgauer to end in Champions League qualification. I don’t think his team will show Die Roten any mercy next weekend.
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