BVB faced an away trip to Oberhausen this afternoon in their first game of pre-season, with the focus heavily being on getting minutes in the legs of players; however, two Dortmund debutants starred for the Yellow Wall.
Who Impressed You The Most In BVB's Opening Pre Season Game?
Team News (First Half)
Dortmund started several senior players in the first half, including Alexander Meyer, Fabio Silva, Yan Couto and Jobe Bellingham. As well as giving a debut to new signing Justin Lerma.
The First Half
BVB started the game on the back foot compared to their supposed inferior opponents, Rot-Weiss Oberhausen, who flew out of the traps from the first whistle.
Dortmund goalkeeper Meyer plays a long ball from a goal kick into the midfield that is immediately intercepted by the Oberhausen player who nodded it back forward to their forward line, Dortmund don't close striker Luca Schlax down quick enough and it allowed a pass to be played through to eventual goalscorer Timur Mehmet Kesim who hit a strike into the top corner and Rot-Weiss Oberhausen led 1-0 5 minutes into the game.
The next 25 minutes would be a fairly even contest with both teams having small chances on goal. Dortmund's best during this period was from a set piece. The potentially departing Yan Couto played a free kick into the box from the right-hand side. Fabio Silva met the cross, but it was a tame header and straight into the goalkeeper's hands.
However, in the last 15 minutes of the first half, Borussia Dortmund looked to have found some rhythm in their play as they began to dominate the ball and pass it around with more conviction and confidence against the lower league side.
Fabio Silva would again have another chance for an equaliser after Yan Couto slipped the Portuguese striker through on goal, but Silva dragged the shot wide of the far post.
BVB's equaliser would eventually come as American winger Mathis Albert cut in on the left hand side, following a beautiful cross field pass by Justin Lerma, had his shot blocked, but it would fall back to the Dortmund debutant who found the back of the net with a smart left footed, first time finish past the goalkeeper to finally give BVB a deserved equaliser at the end of the first half.
Team News (Second Half)
BVB's second-half side was slightly more inexperienced than the first, with Niko Kovac giving debuts to Japanese midfielder Takato Yamamoto and French defender Joane Gadou, but the side also had the presence of star striker Serhou Guirassy in attack.
Brett Davis-Imagn ImagesThe Second Half
BVB started the second half a lot better than they started the first, seemingly kicking off from where the first half ended. This was shown 10 minutes into the half, where Serhou Guirassy was played through by 17-year-old midfielder Enzo Dos Santos, and Guirassy unleashed a thunderous strike with the outside of the right foot and into the back of the net, putting Dortmund into the lead in the match 2-1.
Borussia Dortmund then appeared in control of the contest, with Rot-Weiss Oberhausen having limited spells with the ball. This continued until the 78th minute of the game, when Takoto Yamamoto, who had looked bright throughout the 45 minutes he played, played a quick one-two with forward Marwan Mirza, feeding through Yamamoto, who finished emphatically into the bottom corner, putting Dortmund 3-1 up and sealing victory in Oberhausen.
What Next For BVB?
Borussia Dortmund next head to Dusseldorf, where they face the recently relegated into 3. Liga side at the Merkur Spiel-Arena on the 25th July, before going over to Japan for the next part of their pre-season fixtures.
Author's Verdict
After a rusty opening 5-10 minutes for Dortmund in the first half, BVB got better and better as the game progressed, with the second half being a very professional performance and providing the platform for Justin Lerma in the first 45 and Takato Yamamoto in the second 45 to shine on debut.
This game would have been mainly to get match fitness and sharpness into Niko Kovac's squad ahead of inevitably more challenging fixtures in their pre-season schedule, but in a results-driven business, a first pre-season game win will be the cherry on top of a successful afternoon.
