Borussia Dortmund missed the opportunity to climb to the third spot in the Bundesliga as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Mainz thanks to a late equalizer, on Sunday.
Marco Reus struck early in the third minute to put BVB in a dominant position after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had done well to draw defenders away, allowing Andre Schurrle to tee up Reus, who made no mistake. Chances came the visitors’ way following the goal, but they failed to make them count, with Aubameyang missing to find an open net. And with 7 minutes left to play, they were made to pay for their profligacy as Danny Latza equalized from Levin Oztunali’s swirling cross.
Dortmund dropped valuable points in the title chase against manager Thomas Tuchel’s former side and are currently in the 4th place in the league standings. Let’s see how each BVB player fared on the night:
Roman Burki – 6
Was rarely tested throughout the evening, with Dortmund dominating the possession. Couldn’t do anything to stop Latza’s powerful effort.
Lukas Piszczek – 5
Ineffective display from the right-back. Did not get forward enough and failed to thwart Latza from getting on the end of the cross for the leveller.
Sokratis – 6
Gave away a couple of silly free-kicks, but did a good job for most part of the game. Strong in the air, he won 10 of his 13 headers and swept up everything that came in his way.
Mathias Ginter – 6
Made a few key interceptions and looked solid for large parts. Distributed the ball well out from the defence.
Marcel Schmelzer – 6
Went up and down on the left-hand side. Had a couple of weak and feeble attempts from distance at goal in either half. Was caught in two minds in the lead up to the equalizer for Mainz.
Julian Weigl – 6
Did his job well, breaking up play with some important tackles and interceptions in the middle of the park and recycling possession for his team.
Gonzalo Castro – 7
Controlled the game from the midfield for Dortmund. Calm and composed with the ball at his feet, started plenty of attacking moves, while never shying away from his defensive duties.
Raphael Guerreiro – 6
Tested the Mainz goalkeeper from a set-piece halfway into the first half. Struggled to make any impact in the middle of the park and was substituted in the 66th minute.
Andre Schurrle – 7
Looked the most likely to make things happen in the final third. Set up Reus for the opener and came close to scoring himself in the second half. Was booked for a physical confrontation with Jairo Sampeiro.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 7
The Gabon international was reinstated to the starting line-up after his return from the AFCON. Sharp in his movements, he was a constant menace for the Mainz defence. However, missed a sitter in the first-half to double his team’s lead.
Marco Reus – 7
Finished his chance coolly in the third minute to put his team ahead. Sent Aubameyang through on goal with a lovely pass, but the striker failed to convert.
Substitutes
Mario Götze – 5
Replaced Guerreiro after the hour mark but failed to have any kind of impact.
Ousmane Dembele – 6
Came on for Aubameyang for the last 20 minutes. Slow to close down Oztunali in the build-up to the goal.
Christian Pulisic – NA
Replaced Gonzalo Castro in the 86th minute. Not enough time to make an impact.