Match Ratings: Borussia Dortmund Bounces Back Against FC Augsburg

Despite falling behind within the first 10 minutes, Borussia Dortmund rallied and came from behind to win 3-1 over FC Augsburg. They were defensively sound for most of the action, and in the attack, they had their moments of lethality that should be expected from this Borussia Dortmund squad.

Here are our ratings from yesterday’s game...

Starting XI

Marwin Hitz

Paul: 6

Hitz wasn’t especially busy yesterday, nor was the Augsburg goal his fault. He didn’t do a whole lot wrong.

Nick: 6

After allowing the Augsburg goal, which I don’t find him at fault for, he had next to nothing to do.

Sean: 6

He did a fantastic job job standing in goal and watching the play on the other side of the pitch.

Mateu Morey

Paul: 6

Nick: 6

I can’t really remember anything memorable he did, good or bad.

Sean: 6

I thought he was... fine?

Manuel Akanji

Paul: 4

This wasn’t Akanji’s finest hour, and he was largely at fault for the Augsburg goal. He’s been really good this season, but the last couple games have seen him regress. Hopefully he turns things round.

Nick: 3.5

I was really let down by Akanji yesterday. I thought he could have done a lot more on the Augsburg goal. Like Paul said, Akanji hasn’t put in the best performances lately and it shows with how badly the defense as a whole has shown.

Sean: 3.75

Enlightened centrism is cool. Akanji’s performance was not.

Mats Hummels

Paul: 5

Like Akanji, Hummels has struggled in recent games. He had a better game yesterday, but nothing to shout about.

Nick: 5

Didn’t do anything to stand out, but did nothing to lose the game for Dortmund.

Sean: 5

To be honest, the defense as a whole didn’t do much yesterday. These ratings have been boring.

Raphael Guerreiro

Paul: 7

Guerreiro was back to his best yesterday, leading the team for ball progression and shot-creating actions. His assist for Sancho’s goal was excellent.

Nick: 7

As Rapha goes, so does Dortmund. And Rapha was very good yesterday. His assist to Sancho was amazing vision and passing, he was among the most positive players on the field, and he was an asset in defense.

Sean: 8

Guerreiro was an offensive machine yesterday. He was tied with Jadon Sancho with the most shot-creating actions with eight. His most notable contribution, of course, was his beautiful lobbed pass to play Sancho in behind Augsburg’s back line.

Thomas Delaney

Paul: 9

Delaney was all over the park, all game long, and through force of will he was able to draw Dortmund level. He was an important presence when things weren’t going BVB’s way. He even managed to contribute in possession, which hasn’t always been the case.

Nick: 9

MOTM performance, something I never thought I would say about Delaney. He was sturdy in defense, as usual, but his presence in the attack was a pleasant surprise. He definitely has a place in this squad when healthy.

Sean: 9

Chuggachuggachuggachuggachugga...

Do you hear that? That’s the Dane Train pulling into the station, and I am ready to hop on board. Delaney was a monster all game long with no less than nine tackles, four interceptions, and a goal to boot. What a performance.

Julian Brandt

Paul: 6

Brandt had a few wayward passes that hurt the team in the first half, but he found his feet and did quite well in the second half. He has racked up a decent amount of minutes in recent weeks. Hopefully this will help him return to form.

Nick: 6

Good not great, and that is okay. Like Paul said, he grew into the game as time wore on and was a benefit to the team with his movement and passing. Hopefully this is the start of Brandt returning to form.

Sean: 6

Gio Reyna

Paul: 6

Sean: 4

Reyna’s lack of production is becoming a little worrying. He has no goals or assists in his last six games, and it’s not due to poor finishing. He’s having trouble generating shots or shot assists, and had another difficult day yesterday.

Nick: 5

I like that Terzic has faith in him to continue playing him, but something is up with Gio at the moment. He hasn’t been as clean with his runs or passing. Maybe that’s because he has being played as a winger and has been unable to wander inside. He did earn the penalty for Haaland with a well-taken shot that was deflected on a handball, so that’s a step in the right direction.

Jadon Sancho

Paul: 9

I thought Sancho was the best player on the pitch, slightly edging out Delaney. He contributed eight shot-creating actions, two of which resulted in a goal. He rounded his performance off with a lovely finish for BVB’s second goal.

Sean: 9.000001

Watch out Bundesliga defenders, Jadon Sancho is heating up. After a disappointing first half of the season, Sancho has shot out of the gate in 2021, with three goals and four assists over six games in January. If BVB are to claw their way back in to the title race, or make a run at the Champions League, Jadon Sancho will need to contribute mightily.

Nick: 9.000002 (suck it, Keyser!)

I think the “Is Sancho back?” discussion can be put to rest because our special English boy has been scintillating as of late. He was clearly the best attacking player in the line-up yesterday, and deserved his goal with his constant positive movement.

Marco Reus

Paul: 7

Nick: 7

Once again, Reus was a constant threat moving forward while putting in a solid shift tracking back on defense. His assist was a perfectly-taken free kick that would’ve found the head of Hummels had Delaney not gotten there first.

Sean: 8

His assist on Delaney’s goal was the 87th assist of his career with Borussia Dortmund, a new club record. He continued to lead by example with an industrious work rate, constantly dropping deep to pick up loose balls and win challenges.

Erling Haaland

Paul: 6

Sean: 7

While he wasn’t credited with a goal, his hard work and shot attempt created the own goal that ended up putting the game to bed. He did miss a penalty, but given the end result I won’t hold that against him.

Nick: 6

He may not have gotten on the scoresheet or had many chances for a goal (aside from his missed penalty), but his hard work to make space for himself didn’t go unnoticed.

Substitutes

Jude Bellingham

Nick: 7

Had a solid performance off the bench. Had what would be considered a hockey assist on the own-goal, thanks in part to his footwork in tight spaces. I’m continuously impressed by Bellingham and sometimes forget that he’s just 17 years old.

Lukasz Piszczek

N/A

Nico Schulz

N/A

Nico Schulz’s Man-Bun

Sean: 0

Mahmoud Dahoud

There’s no rating in the world that can express our joy for seeing Dahoud back on the pitch!

Overall

Paul: 7

It wasn’t perfect, but it was progress. The first half was frustrating, but in large part because we’ve watched Dortmund struggle so much in the last few games. Once they got back on level terms, they felt relatively in control. They will need to put in a few more of these before fans start to buy that they’re turning a corner though.

Sean: 7

Given Borussia Dortmund’s performances over the last few weeks, this result was more than acceptable. Even though BVB fell behind early, they kept on it and were able to claw their way back into the game, and from that point on, looked to be the favorites to go on and win. It won’t magically fix Dortmund’s season, but it’s a good step in the right direction.

Nick: 7

With Dortmund’s poor start, the fact that we’re talking about such a positive response from the squad appears to be a very positive step from a poor run of form. Outside of that first goal, I thought Dortmund was in complete control on Saturday. There’s still a lot of work to be done to make a push for Champions League qualification, but there’s a lot of good things to take away from the Augsburg match.

Your Thoughts?

Do you agree with our ratings? Leave your thoughts below.