Heja BVB! A high-flying first half was enough to send Dortmund past Holstein Kiel, who seemed a bit more interested in saving their legs for their promotion push than the chance at the German Cup. Regardless, Die Schwarzgelben were sharp on the attack and found the space and the mistakes in their opponents back line to inflict plenty of pain. The quiet second half was marred by a brutal injury to Mateu Morey which put a major damper on the result of the game.

Here are the ratings for the cup semi!

Starting XI

Marwin Hitz

Zac: 7

Despite being beaten by Reese at the 27th minute, Hitz was saved by the post and carried out the remainder of his duties with little fuss.

Paul: 8

He wasn’t the busiest, but when called upon he made some excellent saves.

Łukasz Piszczek

Zac: 8

The veteran right back was back in the starting lineup and was exceptionally active, bombing down the right flank in the space vacated by Gio Reyna, who often looked to move inside. Piszcu pulled the play wide and stretched Holstein Kiel’s defense, creating caps for his teammates.

Paul: 7

Manuel Akanji

Zac: 7.5

Another assured performance from the Swiss defender. He may not be bossing the defense like when he first donned the black and yellow, but he looks a whole lot better than he has in the past.

Paul: 7

Mats Hummels

Zac: 7.5

Hummels came close to adding a 6th goal to the scoreline, but otherwise completed his defensive duties and did well to help the play progress forward and provide a passing outlet for the midfielders.

Paul: 8

Hummels made an excellent last-ditch tackle at some point in the game (honestly I’ve forgotten when it was and so that’s all I’m giving you), and for that I’m pushing his rating up to an 8.

Raphael Guerreiro

Zac: 7.5

Guerreiro interchanged exquisitely with his teammates, and probably deserves the assist on Gio Reyna’s second goal. He moved the ball forward well but does not receive a higher score from me only because of his defensive effort. Yes the game was well in the bag, but Guerreiro continues to look disinterested in his defensive duties and the need to track, which is frustrating.

Paul: 7

Jude Bellingham

Zac: 8

A good goal and a great game from the Englishman. Bellingham’s sloppy suspension last week was motivation enough for him to get back to his best this weekend, and he put in a strong shift in midfield that was capped off with a goal.

Paul: 8

Emre Can

Zac: 7

It was good for Can to play in a game where everyone else was on fire, so he did not have to be. Can had a few sloppy errors but mostly did well to shield the defense and give Bellingham the space to roam. His chipped through ball for Reus’ goal was a thing of beauty.

Paul: 6

Thorgan Hazard

Zac: 8

Excellent to see Toto back among the goals. His movement around the box caused problems and he and Sancho looked to twist up the Kiel defense. Though this season has been a write-off for the Belgian, hopefully he can gain some confidence from today’s goal.

Paul: 8

Gio Reyna

Zac: 10

Sharp, two-goal performance from the American Dream. It has been a few months since he last merited that nickname, but Gio has roared back into form at just the right time to score in one of his favorite competitions. Hopefully he can give it his all in the season run-in.

Paul: 9

A couple lovely goals. It’s good to see Reyna returning to form after a couple rough months.

Jadon Sancho

Zac: 9

Though he did not find his way onto the scoresheet, Sancho still posted two assists in a game where his quality was on full display. The Englishman worked his socks off to create space for his teammates and picked up a full 90 minutes of match fitness.

Paul: 9

Sancho chipped in with two assists, and reminded everyone why he is so vital to this team. He also rinsed Fin Bartels.

Marco Reus

Zac: 9

Tasked with leading the line in the absence of an injured Erling Haaland, Reus managed to stir up some of the tricky interplay that helped Dortmund stay afloat before the arrival of the Norwegian.

Paul: 8

Led the line with authority. A couple deft touches helped set up Reyna’s first goal.

Substitutes

Julian Brandt

Zac: 6.5

Paul: 6

Thomas Delaney

Zac: 6.5

Paul: 6

Reinier

Zac: 6.5

Paul: 6

Grew into the game and was looking sharp and aware around the box.

Mateu Morey

N/A

It is an incredible shame to see Mateu Morey, who overcame massive early-career injuries at Barcelona, dealt to another huge injury blow. It looked like the young Spaniard hyper-extended both his knee and his hamstring, and his wails of pain foretell a long, ugly recovery.

Thomas Meunier

N/A

Overall

Zac: 9

The rating for this game would be a 10 if not for the injury to Morey, and because I wish Dortmund had notched home another in the second half to make the performance more rounded. But that’s being picky. Despite the looming consequences of Morey’s potential injury both in the near term and potentially in the transfer market, Dortmund did this job today in style to come flying into a German Cup final. It would be great for Die Schwarzgelben to pick up some silverware at the end of a season with so many ups and downs. Today’s dominant performance will need to be repeated in Berlin, but BVB have a penchant for scoring against the energy drink rivals, and a fit Erling Haaland should have something to say about the chance to lay his hands on a trophy.

Paul: 8

I’m being a bit of a stooge here because a 5-0 win is obviously an excellent effort, but at the same time, they were doing it to a 2. Bundesliga side that never should have stood a chance. BVB handled their business with efficiency, and made sure of their progress into the final. I particularly liked the fact they had everything wrapped up by half time, and were able to take their foot off the gas in the second half. Now they’ve just got to go and win it in Berlin. Do it for that lovely boy Mateu!