The Borussia U19s have pulled off a surprise by deservedly beating Paris Saint-Germain at the Brackel Youth Performance Centre in their final UEFA Youth League group game and qualifying for the play-off round for the third season in succession.

The goals in a highly interesting youth match played in front of 1,220 spectators were scored by Samuel Bamba (12) and second-half substitute Vincenzo Onofrietti (77). PSG midfielder Ibrahim Mbayé had been sent off for a rough challenge on Rafael Lubach in the 41st minute.

“I’m unbelievably proud of this group. The fact they have left two top teams, Paris Saint-Germain and Newcastle, in their wake despite the most difficult personnel conditions is sensational. A huge compliment to the lads: they played with a lot of ambition, heart and dedication,” summarised coach Mike Tullberg, who especially had to improvise in the defensive positions. In addition to the injured Filippo Mane and Jaden Korzynietz, Hendry Blank was called up to the first-team squad. Danylo Krevsun (suspended) and U17 World Cup winner Almugera Kabar (injured) were not available either.

The BVB coach placed his trust – as he previously did in the 2-1 victory over Leverkusen in the Bundesliga top match – in youngsters Elias Benkara and Tyler Meiser, though they were given new roles on this occasion: Benkara occupied the second centre-back position alongside Leonardo Posadas, and Meiser moved over to an unfamiliar positon on the left of defence. “I almost cannot put their performance into words. It was fantastic, but one must also praise the experienced lads who supported them superbly,” beamed Mike Tullberg.

Paris Brunner started up front for the first time since winning the World Cup with the Germany U17 team and played alongside Cole Campbell, who had just recovered from illness and was replaced by Vincenzo Onofrietti for the second half. Julian Rijkhoff mostly operated in midfield, while attacker Samuel Bamba helped out the young Tyler Meiser on the left flank until his substitution (70). In the centre, Kjell Wätjen and Rafael Lubach sublimely covered ground and got stuck into challenges.

Borussia allowed their visitors lots of possession but little space, sat deep and lined up very compactly in order to make an impact with quick switch play. They managed to do so outstandingly long spells. And perfectly in the 12th minute: Julian Rijkhoff won the ball back in midfield, flicked it on towards Kjell Wätjen and his intelligent pass was thundered into the net by Samuel Bamba.

An outstanding defensive performance

With an early 1-0 lead under their belts, BVB defended as a collective in vigilant, devoted and hard-running fashion. The team also managed to consistently extricate themselves from pressure situations at the right moments and cause Paris Saint-Germain trouble with quick counter-attacks. Dortmund clearly had the better of the chances. Examples included when Bamba fired the ball wide of the right post in the 25th minute following more outstanding build-up play from captain Kjell Wätjen and when Elias Benkara narrowly missed the visitors’ goal with a header from Rafael Lubach’s cross (29).

PSG could only create visual superiority. There were only a few moments where they posed a goal threat. One such moment came in the 39th minute when a shot from Ibrahim Mbayé took an unfortunate deflection off Tyler Meiser and landed on the bar. A short while later, the French outfit shot themselves in the foot when Mbayé was red-carded for a foul of Rafael Lubach.

The Parisians linked up impressively but ultimately failed to break down a well-functioning Dortmund rearguard. Borussia, meanwhile, continued to implement their match plan with concentration even after the sending-off. Spurred on by the excellent Kjell Wätjen, they had some gilt-edged opportunities to increase their lead. Julian Rijkhoff, for example, struck the side-netting (54), while Paris Brunner was twice denied by PSG goalie Mouquet. The final doubts were only dispelled in the 77th minute by Vincenzo Onofrietti, who caught the visiting goalkeeper wrong-footed after Rafael Lubach had won the ball back and scored to make it 2-0.

In the play-off for the round of 16, Borussia will play an away tie against a representative of the UEFA Youth League “Domestic Champions Path” on 6/7 February. The draw for the play-offs will take place in Nyon on 19 December. Before that, the U19s still need to play their rescheduled Bundesliga fixture against SC Verl (Sunday at 11:00 CET, Brackel Youth Performance Centre).

U19s: Lisewski – Rashidi, Benkara, Posadas, Meiser – Wätjen, Lubach – Campbell (Onofrietti, 46), Rijkhoff (Ubani, 84), Bamba (Herrmann, 70) – Brunner
(wiwi)