Player Ratings | 1.FC Köln 0-4 Borussia Dortmund | OneFootball

Now in the second half of the season, Borussia Dortmund travelled to 1.FC Köln as they continue to try and bring themselves back into contention for a Champions League place.

The first half was uneventful with both teams struggling to muster up any meaningful chances, in the 12th minute Donyell Malen opened the scoring by converting a Julian Brandt corner which ended up being the only decent chance of the half before the game was halted due to both sets of fans protesting against the DFL and the impending investor deal.

In the second half, Dortmund woke up and their performance improved. Jadon Sancho would be pulled down by Rasmus Carstensen to win Dortmund a penalty which despite the Englishman wanting to take Niclas Füllkrug converted. The third goal was scored by Malen once again who latched onto Ian Maatsen’s defence-splitting pass to seal the game. Youssoufa Moukoko would score a fourth in added time.

Dortmund’s win sees them move level on points with RB Leipzig who play Bayer Leverkusen later on Saturday.

1.FC Köln:

Marvin Schwäbe – 5

Rasmus Carstensen – 5

Timo Hubers – 5

Julian Chabot – 6

Max Finkgrafe – 6

Dejan Ljubicic – 5

Eric Martel – 5

Denis Huseinbasic – 5

Linton Maina – 5

Jan Thielmann – 5

Florian Kainz – 5

Others: Fairde Alidou (5), Justin Diehl (6), Jacob Christensen (5), Benno Schmiyz (-), Segis Adamyan (-)

Borussia Dortmund:

Gregor Kobel – 6

Thomas Meunier – 5

Niklas Süle – 5

Nico Schlotterbeck – 6

Ian Maatsen – 7 – In his two starts for Dortmund since arriving on loan from Chelsea, Maatsen has shown that he is a big upgrade on Ramy Bensebaini. The 21-year-old’s assist came from him losing the ball before winning it straight back and playing a splitting pass through to Malen, this is something that his Algerian teammate could not do.

Julian Brandt – 6

Sahil Özcan – 6

Marcel Sabitzer – 6

Jadon Sancho – 7 – His first start since returning to Dortmund and the Englishman has once again proven why he can aid Dortmund’s attack. Once Sancho is full match fit then he will likely be able to influence the game even more.

Niclas Füllkrug – 6 – Despite converting the penalty that Sancho won, Füllkrug was absent for most of the game. With Moukoko’s recent performances, it is becoming more difficult to find a reason justifying a start for the 30-year-old.

Donyell Malen – 7 – After a poor first half of the season, Malen started the second half in the right manner with two well-taken finishes. The Dutchman will need to continue this type of form as his Jamie Bynoe-Gittens’ recent performances have justified him starting ahead of Malen.

Others: Hendry Blank (5), Marco Reus (5), Jamie Bynoe-Gittens (6), Youssoufa Moukoko (6), Giovanni Reyna (5)

GGFN | Jack Meenan