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BVB continued their domination of the Bundesliga, putting five past Timo Horn en route to an utter dismantling of Köln.
Coach
Peter Bosz: 9
Four matches in, and Dortmund still haven’t conceded a goal. That’s impressive no matter who the opponents are. Bosz’s side was well organized and looked strong and confident in possession. With a goal in the second minute, Dortmund were in complete control from start to finish.
Bosz handled the substitutes very well. He gave Pulisic some much needed rest before bringing him in, allowed Weigl to get some time back in the squad, and even got Isak some minutes towards the end.
Starting XI
Roman Bürki: 7
Smooth sailing for Roman, and a nice way to recover from his lackluster performance against Spurs. He was a spectator for most of the match, but made one or two confident saves when called upon, including a one-on-one.
Dan-Axel Zagadou: 7
Looked much more confident than his Supercup appearance. He was good in possession and won several aerial battles when called upon.
Sokratis: 10 MOTM
I really can’t think of a way that Papa could have played better. He was in tank mode today, shutting down everything and everyone that tried to come anywhere near the Dortmund goal. He kept Bittencourt and Cordoba in his metaphorical back pocket the entire night, and to top it off, he got a goal. Why not a ten?
Toprak: 9
Minus the goal, Toprak was just as good as Sokratis. This was without a doubt his best performance with the club. Both CBs were instrumental in Dortmund’s possession of the ball and the buildup of play.
Piszczek: 7
Had a wicked assist on Aubameyang’s second goal, and performed admirably in his defensive duties.
Nuri Sahin: 7
Acted as the protypical defensive midfielder, providing tackles and excellent passing through the middle. Was subbed off for Julian Weigl in the second half.
Mahmoud Dahoud: 8
Mo looked every bit the Gündogan replacement that we’ve been begging for for years. His passing was exquisite, his movement off the ball strong, and he even had several sights at goal. His assist on the 5th goal was a thing of beauty.
Gonzalo Castro: 7
Castro-o-meter™: 85%, certified #goodcastro
His passing was better than we’ve been used to, and he had an artful layoff to Aubameyang that forced a decent save from Timo Horn in the first staff.
Andriy Yarmolenko: 8
Welcome to the Bundesliga, Andriy! It took all of one minute and fifty seconds for Yarmolenko to find his way onto the score sheet, assisting Max Philipp’s first Bundesliga goal.
Most importantly, his hamstrings held up just fine.
Max Philipp: 9
Got his first two goals for Dortmund, and in general looked dangerous along the left-hand side.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: 9
Two goals, just another day at the office for Auba. He looked dangerous all night and gave Köln’s center-backs fits.
Substitutes
Christian Pulisic: 6
He came on halfway through the second half and created some chances, but by the time he got into the match it was already over.
Julian Weigl: 7
In just 20 or so minutes, Julian reminded everyone watching just how valuable he is to the squad. He did a great job of pulling the strings in midfield, navigating around opponents and picking out passes.
Alexander Isak: NR
Only played for about 6 minutes, but he did get a decent shot that fizzled just wide.
Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below. Heja BVB!