A rampant Barcelona side tore Borussia Dortmund apart on Wednesday night to effectively book their place in the UEFA Champions League semi-final. Raphinha opened the scoring before Robert Lewandowski bagged a brace against his former club, with Lamine Yamal – who became the youngest player to reach 20 Champions League games – adding a fourth for Hansi Flick’s side.
Barcelona 4-0 Borussia Dortmund
Hansi Flick warned his Barcelona players to expect a different Borussia Dortmund side to the one they beat earlier in the competition. Under Niko Kovac, die Schwarzgelben have looked confident and attack with pace, but it was the hosts who started at full throttle. Lamine Yamal and Robert Lewandowski forced Gregor Kobel into two early saves with Borussia Dortmund unable to gain a foothold on the game. At the midway point in the first half, Barcelona had 73 percent possession and completed 166 passes (91%) in comparison to Dortmund’s 51 (75%).
Lively throughout, Raphinha – top scorer in this season’s Champions League – opened the scoring after getting a touch of the ball on the line following Pau Cubarsi’s goal bound effort. Dortmund’s Carney Chukwuemeka and Jamie Gittens – the latter of whom started ahead of Maximilian Beier – forced Wojciech Szczęsny into two saves before Karim Adeyemi whipped cross missed Serhou Guirassy by centimetres as Barcelona went into the break with a slender 1-0 lead.
Barcelona again capitalised on Borussia Dortmund losing the ball in key areas. Yamal found himself in a 1v1 situation against Ramy Bensebaini, who struggled to contain the Spaniard all evening, before chipping the ball to the far post to find Raphinha whose header to the far post was met by Robert Lewandowski to double Barcelona’s tally.
The Pole then doubled his contribution on the night midway through the second half, capping off an excellent Barcelona counter-attack after Dortmund missed an opportunity at the other end. Flick’s side played with one-two touch football and high intensity as Dortmund collapsed. Julian Brandt was at fault for Barcelona’s fourth with a misplaced pass which ignited another counter-attack, capped off by Lamine Yamal.
An inability to convert chances and individual errors in key errors ultimately led to Borussia Dortmund’s downfall. A 4-0 win is no less than Barcelona deserve, and Niko Kovac’s side will need a miracle at the Westfalenstadion next week if they are to secure a place in the Champions League semi-final.
Borussia Dortmund Player Ratings
Gregor Kobel (6) – Called into action to deny Lamine Yamal and Robert Lewandowski with two superb saves in the opening seven minutes. If you’re being picky, could have done more to push Pau Cubarsi’s effort away but was in not for the Swiss goalkeeper, BVB would have been worse off.
Julian Ryerson (5) – Has so often been praised for his energy and fight but continuously struggled against Raphinha.
Emre Can (6) – Managed to contain Robert Lewandowski for the most part but an error almost led to a Barcelona third midway through the second half.
Waldemar Anton (5) – For the most part Emre Can and Waldemar Anton did a commendable job but when Borussia Dortmund’s midfield and attack are misplacing passes, BVB’s backline was always going to be in for a busy night.
Ramy Bensebaini (3) – Always backtracking and struggled to contain Lamine Yamal. Often beat for pace or trickery and allowed the Spaniard too much time on the ball for Barcelona’s second after failing to close Yamal down.
Felix Nmecha (3) – Started for the first time since January 21 and a big call from Niko Kovac tonight to start the German, who returned from injury on Saturday against Freiburg where he only played 20 minutes. Anonymous on the night and failed to offer defensive solidity from midfield.
Carney Chukwuemeka (5) – Started successive games as a Borussia Dortmund player for the first time and showed glimpses of excellence with his first touch but like most of his Dortmund teammates, struggled against a Barcelona side that showed class.
Karim Adeyemi (5) – Gave the ball away deep in his own half which led to Raphinha opening the scoring for Barcelona. Created an excellent chance for Serhou Guirassy at the end of the first half, but the Guinean failed to convert Adeyemi’s whipped cross. Yellow card. Replaced at half time.
Julian Brandt (3) – At fault for Barcelona’s fourth of the night. One of Borussia Dortmund’s most experienced players but completely off the pace tonight. Zero creativity, wayward passes and completely off the pace.
Jamie Gittens (4) – Forced Szczęsny into a save at the end of the first half and cut inside, bending the ball just the wrong side of the post two minutes after the restart.
Serhou Guirassy (5) – Another player returning from injuries that looked off the pace. Failed to convert a cross from Adeyemi and so often looked isolated. Booked.
Borussia Dortmund Substitutes
Maximilian Beier (4) – Replaced Adeyemi, who was on a yellow card, at half time. Has been one of Borussia Dortmund’s best players of late but struggled to do anything of note.
Gio Reyna (-), Salih Özcan (-), Niklas Sule (-), Julien Duranville (-)
