The Westphalian Stadium was packed to capacity, with 81,365 fans witnessing Borussia Dortmund's historic victory in the Champions League semi-finals. Whether Dortmund reach the Champions League final or not, it will be the team's last Champions League home of the season, and the result of the first leg victory will naturally please the home fans. This victory confirmed the Bundesliga's fifth Champions League place in the new season, and Dortmund, who have locked the top five in the Bundesliga, is sure to participate in the Champions League in the new season.
This is the fifth Champions League semi-final in 60 years since 1963/64 and the ninth European semi-final. The only time Dortmund won 1-0 at home in the first leg of eight European semi-finals was a 1-0 win in the 1997 Champions League semi-finals, and finally won the only Champions League title in the team's history.
The most surprising to fans was the abandoned Sancho, who was "banished" to Dortmund by Manchester United, with 12 successful dribbles in 17 dribbles and 13 successful duels in 19 matches, both the most in this game.
Jadon Sancho single-handedly dominated the right side of the pitch and was Dortmund's most eye-catching player of the campaign. He created three crucial chances throughout the pitch before team-mate Brandt squandered a one-on-one chance and Phil Krueger failed to convert Jadon Sancho's ball in front of goal from close range.
Jadon Sancho is the only English player to have made more than 11 dribbles in a single Champions League game, and only Lionel Messi in 2008 has made more successful dribbles (16) in a single game than Sancho in the history of the Champions League semi-finals. Although UEFA officially awarded the best player award to defender Hummels of Paris for a clean sheet, Sancho, who was too prominent, received the highest score from several media and rating agencies after the game. Compared to Mbappe, who was stared at throughout the game and had bad luck to hit the post, Sancho is more like a top superstar worth 180 million euros.
Compared with the two former friends - Haaland, who was almost invisible and eliminated in the quarterfinals, and Bellingham, who was replaced in 75 minutes after a 2-2 draw with Bayern in the first leg of the semifinals, Sancho is actually the one who is closest to the Champions League champion in the mathematical sense of the "Dort Three", such a plot reversal is really "magical".
Sancho's surprise in the Champions League semi-final quickly became a hot topic on British social media, and most of them were mockery of Manchester United. The player who overshadowed Mbappe by getting the highest rating in the Champions League semi-finals was actually sent to the reserve team for "reflection" for 3 months last year because of disobedience to coach Ten Hag, and was not eligible to enter the Manchester United first-team canteen. Manchester United's troubled teenager played a performance worth hundreds of millions of dollars in Dortmund, is it a personal problem of the player, or is it a problem of different coaches and even the club's management?
After the game, the British media and fans called on Southgate to bring Sancho to the European Championship, because the "well-fed" Sancho can definitely send enough "ammunition" for Kane on the wing. The expansion of the squad from 23 to 26 has also increased the possibility of Sancho being selected. If Sancho can continue to play this campaign, it is not impossible to participate in the European Championship.
Phil Krueger, who scored the winning goal for Borussia Dortmund in the 36th minute of the first half, has 10 goals and 4 assists in his last 14 home games, averaging 1 goal per game. Mbappe was targeted by veterans Hummels and Schlotterbeck, with just 26 touches of the ball in the first half, two dribbles and one successful attempt, most of the time outside the box, and a staggering half-time shot on goal.
Mbappe had only 3 shots on goal and 1 on target, only 2 of his 7 dribbles and only 3 of his 10 duels, and his statistics were comprehensively crushed by Sancho. Mbappe has played in six Champions League semi-finals and finals in his career, scoring just one goal in total. Since 2021, Mbappe has not participated in the Champions League in which he has not scored a goal, and Grand Paris has only 2 draws and 9 defeats without a win.
In the pre-match press conference, Enrique publicly challenged the media, accusing the journalists who questioned his tactics of not knowing the ball, but the result was the opposite. The big center Muani and Gonzalo Ramos, who should have pinned down the defense in the penalty area and created offensive space for Mbappe, were all sitting on the bench, and Gonzalo Ramos, who had five goals and one assist in the last five Ligue 1 games, only played five minutes in the last six Champions League games. Enrique didn't replace the invisible Barcola until the 65th minute with the in-form Muani, allowing Mbappe to return to the familiar left, but it was too late. The abandonment of two centre-forwards with a total transfer fee of 160 million euros is an important reason for the lack of offensive strength in this campaign.
In the 51st minute of the second half, Mbappe and Achraf hit the post twice in succession, and there are 10 shots on the post in the Champions League this season, just one short of the record held by Barcelona in 2003/04 (11) in a single season in the Champions League. The main defender Lucas retired injured before half-time, which made matters worse. Enrique made just one tactical substitution on the pitch, leaving the French media and fans alike to question his on-the-spot adaptability.
'It was a well-deserved victory, it's just a shame that we could have scored more. Dortmund coach Terzic's emotion is also the concern of many Dortmund fans, the team's performance in this game is actually difficult to say perfect, and many missed opportunities have also buried the hidden worry of being overturned in the second leg. Although it lost 0-1 away, it has lost 1 goal in the first leg of the first leg of the previous European knockout rounds, and successfully turned the tables at home 4 times, the most recent one happened to be Dortmund: 1-2 away in the first leg of the 2019/20 Champions League 1/8 finals, and 2-0 at home in the second leg.
But last Sunday's "gift" of Monaco to win three consecutive Ligue 1 titles seems to have made Enrique more stubborn, if he returns to the Parc des Princes and still can't correct his mistakes, I am afraid that good luck will not always favor Paris.