Borussia Dortmund have returned to the top of the table with five games of the season remaining! BVB ran out 4-0 (3-0) winners against Europa League champions Eintracht Frankfurt on Matchday 29 of the Bundesliga season and are now one point above Bayern Munich, who lost in Mainz this afternoon, in the table.

Boris Rupert reporting

The 81,365 spectators at a sold-out SIGNAL IDUNA PARK were euphoric. The result in Mainz had the stadium already bouncing before kick-off – and it bounced three more times in the first half as Bellingham (19), Malen (24) and Hummels (41) scored to ensure a 3-0 lead heading into the break. Malen scored his second goal in the 66th minute to wrap up the victory in an interesting game in which Eintracht had not thrown in the towel before that point.

The scenario:
Second-placed Borussia Dortmund and seventh-placed Eintracht Frankfurt were meeting for the 100th time in the Bundesliga. BVB went into the matchday with a seven-point lead over the “non-Champions League places”, while Eintracht were nine points adrift of fourth position.

Personnel matters:
Only Duranville (fitness training) and Meunier (muscle injury in the adductor region) were unavailable. Coach Terzic made one change to the team that drew 3-3 in Stuttgart las weekend, with Schlotterbeck replacing Özcan. Can kept his place in defensive midfield.

Tactics:
The Black & Yellows transitioned seamlessly between 4-1-4-1 and 4-3-3. Can initially sat in front of the back four during build-up play and full-back Ryerson held off making forays forward in the opening minutes in a bid to shore up the defence. As a result, the build-up play predominantly went through the (centre) left channel via Guerreiro and Brandt. Frankfurt lined up in a 5-4-1 off the ball, with Rode mostly pushing up and joining centre-forward Kolo Muani in attacking the Dortmund build-up play. The Hesse outfit switched to a 3-4-2-1 when they had possession.

The match & analysis:
BVB were determined to accept the assist from Mainz but were up against an away side that defended in a consistent and focus manner, and did not give away any shooting opportunities up until the 19th minute. But then the league’s top provider initiated the opener: Guerreiro found Brandt, who touched the ball onto Bellingham in the box. The Englishman turned on the ball and fired accurately into the corner. BVB upped their advantage to 2-0 five minutes later. The move started with a free-kick from Kobel from the edge of his own box. Can and Adeyemi flicked the ball on in the air towards Malen, who pulled away from his marker and slotted home ruthlessly from a centre-right position in the box. Adeyemi could have all-but wrapped the game up with a solo run around the half-hour mark, but he was denied by keeper Trapp.

The final third of the first half then belonged to Eintracht, in part because Borussia gave the ball away in midfield too quickly in this period. Kobel made a save to deny Kolo Muani (34) and Dina Ebimbe (35), before Götze fired narrowly wide of the upright (37). That made the goal for 3-0 by Hummels, who headed home a Guerreiro cross in the 41st minute, even more important. Bellingham had an opportunity before the interval but fired his shot from a tight angle wide.

BVB’s first chance after the restart also fell to Bellingham. Following a cross from Adeyemi, he transferred the ball over from his left foot to his fight in a centre-right position in the box, beating an opponent in the process, before firing narrowly wide. After bringing on Borré (52), Frankfurt switched to a 3-5-2 and continued to look lively. That opened up space. A strong cross by Guerreiro was cleared for a corner by Hasebe with Bellingham lurking (57), while Malen’s shot also provided a stern test (60). At the other end, Süle intervened in time to deny Kolo Muani (65). The decisive moment came soon afterwards: Haller got the better of Hasebe and Adeyemi had the vision to pick out Malen, who shot from a centre-right position in the box and found the left corner once again (66).                          

Outlook:
BVB will play away to VfL Bochum this coming Friday, with home games against Wolfsburg and Gladbach to follow.

Teams & goals

Bundesliga Matchday 29
BORUSSIA DORTMUND 4-0 (3-0) EINTRACHT FRANKFURT

Bor. Dortmund: Kobel – Ryerson, Hummels, Schlotterbeck (Süle, 25), Guerreiro (Wolf, 70) – Can – Brandt (Reus, 70), Bellingham (Özcan, 77) – Malen, Haller (Moukoko, 77), Adeyemi
Eintr. Frankfurt: Trapp – Tuta, Hasebe (Gebuhr, 70), Lenz – Buta, Rode (Borré, 52), Sow, Knauff (Kamada, 46) – Dina Ebimbe (Alidou, 84), Götze – Kolo Muani (Aaronson, 70)
Substitutes: Meyer, Reyna, Modeste, Bynoe-Gittens – Ramaj, Toure, Alario, Chandler
Goals: 1-0 Bellingham (Brandt, 19), 2-0 Malen (Adeyemi, 24), 3-0 Hummels (Guerreiro, 41), 4-0 Malen (Adeyemi, 66)
Corners: 5-2 (1-2 at half-time), chance ratio: 8-3 (5-3)
Referee: Aytekin (Oberasbach), yellow cards: Adeyemi – Lenz, Kolo Muani, Rode
Attendance: 81,365 (sold-out), weather: cloudy, rainy spells, 15 degrees