Three Takeaways from Dortmund's statement 3-nil win against Sporting | OneFootball

With a disappointing season so far, Borussia Dortmund has given few reasons for excitement from their fans lately. Facing a tough opponent in Sporting Lisbon, it is fair to assume that most BVB fans had trouble believing Dortmund could pull off an away win in the Champions League playoff round. In what everyone (justly) qualified as a head-to-head matchup, the Black-and-Yellows surprisingly pulled off more than that: a 3-nil win in Portugal is now on the books!

However, the scoreboard does not tell the whole story of this match. In a very inconsistent first half, Borussia Dortmund had trouble creating chances, while Sporting seemed to be taking control of the game. The midfield was by far the biggest concern, looking weak in duels and giving the Portuguese the upper hand in terms of physicality and spatial control.

In the second half, the tables turned. The players explored the space more consciously and effectively, using overloads in the flanks to create momentum and take advantage of counters. They also looked more motivated, with the hunger for the result. I am not sure what Niko Kovač said during the halftime speech, but it definitely worked.

With goals from Guirassy, Groß, and Adeyemi, Borussia Dortmund consolidated a massive result in the playoff's first leg. The Black-and-Yellows now return to the Signal Iduna Park on February 19th for the second leg, and even a two-nil defeat would not be sufficient to take BVB out of the round of 16. Here are three takeaways from Dortmund's statement win against Sporting: