In their first game back after the international break, Borussia Dortmund looked a completely different side on the attacking front as they beat Heidenheim 4-2 but defensively there are still question marks.
Dortmund were in control for most of the first half and finally did not look like a team that was still managed by Edin Terzic. They took advantage of this dominance when Donyell Malen opened the scoring in the 12th minute. Minutes later, after assisting Malen, Karim Adeyemi would double Dormtund’s lead within 20 minutes. Heidenheim would give themselves some hope when Marvin Pieringer headed in for Heidenheim but once again, Malen would reply for Dortmund to once again extend their lead to two goals.
The second half did not start off as brightly as the first and Dortmund had several chances to score a fourth, especially Sehrou Guirassy who was searching for his first goal of the season. They seemed to have it through substitute Marcel Sabitzer but the goal was ruled out for handball.
A foul by Niklas Süle gave Heidenheim a penalty which Maximilian Breunig converted to make it 3-2 and set up a nervy end. A handball gifted Dortmund a penalty late one, which Emre Can scored to secure the three points for Dortmund.
Attacking wise there were a lot of positives to take away from this for Dortmund. Their front four played well, Guirassy immediately fitted in and made the attack better and will only get better as he regains match fitness. However, defensively, Dortmund still have a lot to work on. They made it too easy for Heidenheim to come back into the game and against a better team, they will be punished for it a lot more.
This theory should be put to the test next Sunday when Dortmund travel to Stuttgart, but before that, they must also travel to Brugge for their opening game of the Champions League.
Borussia Dortmund:
Gregor Kobel (6), Julian Ryerson (6), Niklas Süle (6), Waldemar Anton (6), Ramy Bensebaini (6), Pascal Groß (6), Felix Nmecha (5), Donyell Malen (7), Julian Brandt (7), Karim Adeyemi (8), Serhou Guirassy (6)
Others: Marcel Sabitzer (6), Yan Couto (5), Maximilian Beier (5), Emre Can (5), Jamie Gittens (5)
Heidenheim:
Kevin Müller (5), Omar Traoré (5), Patrick Mainka (6), Benedict Gimber (5), Jonas Föhrenbach (5), Jan Schöppner (5), Lennard Maloney (5), Adrian Beck (5), Paul Wanner (5), Leon Scienza (5), Marvin Pieringer (6)
Others: Sirlord Conteh (6), Mikkel Kaufmann (5), Maximilian Breunig (5), Niklas Dorsch (5), Mathias Honsak (-)
GGFN Man of the Match: Karim Adeyemi (8)
Today, it looked like Dortmund’s front four clicked. Donyell Malen, Karim Adeyemi, Julian Brandt and Sehrou Guirassy all combined well and had great chemistry, but Adeyemi was the stand-out.
The winger had a good international break where he scored a hat-trick for Germany under-21s and he has taken his form back into the league. Adeyemi was energetic throughout and was not only able to score but also provide for his teammates and could have easily had a hat trick if his finishing was slightly better.
IF Sahin has finally unlocked the Adeyemi that Dortmund signed from Red Bull Salzburg he will provide a whole new element to the Dortmund attack.
GGFN | Jack Meenan
