BL 2019/20 MD2: BVB - FC KOLN

A very poor performance. The pressing has meant we can't get any decent possession. Our attackers have been starved of the ball and we once again conceded from a set piece.

LP has been really poor slightly at fault for the goal, but has been awful in the build up.

I am a broken record, but we need Hakimi, Dahoud and Brandt in the first 11 as soon as possible

 

I think everyone is awful in the buildup.. Their pressure worked well against us. Too many back and side passes. Their play just reflects Favre's conservatism

 

Brandt has changed this match. What a performance. Sancho scores a good goal on his weaker foot. Curled it in from the a short corner.

 

I actually think Weigl was playing a bit better than Witsel, but Brandt was MoTM and changed the game. He was the player needed to link up play and get the attackers involved.

I thought Reus has a poor game, but Hummels did well. Sancho stepped up in the second half too. Thorgan had a poor game too, but the team won.

It was overall a very poor performance, but most importantly they found a way to win.

 

Good adjustment by coach and players. Brandt and Hakimi did bring a lot of creativity and positive play, participating or scoring in goals 2 and 3.
Hazard doesn't bring much creativity like many warned before we bought him. So the question is: Should Brandt start instead of him, or should we keep Brandt in the center, where he impressed. I think coach should try both options.

 

Brandt definitely needs to start, but the question is can he have the same impact further forward. I think he could, but he will have to be given license to roam wherever he wants.

The problem being, if we move Brandt from the centre it does not solve the problem we have in midfield. We need a Brandt like player in midfield. Brandt is better than Dahoud at this role, but we saw the difference Brandt made. If Favre does not trust Dahoud, then Brandt should remain.

Personally I still think this is our best team and what we need to phase in. Experience comes from matches.

Burki
Hakimi--Akanji--Hummels--Schulz
--------------Weigl--Dahoud------
--Sancho-------Reus---Brandt
------------Alcacer---

However, if Dahoud does not take his chance then Brandt can go deep, with Thorgan taking his position in the attack. Delaney needs to be a squad player brought on to defend leads in certain games. Weigl and Witsel will never cut it. One of Brandt or Dahoud must start every game.

 

Hazard and Brandt are on different levels when it comes to talent and ability. Brandt is a superstar, where as Thorgan is a good member of the squad. Brandt's already showing he can be up there with Reus, Sancho and Hummels.

 

I know that you do not favor Witsel but today's game showed you exactly why witsel needs to play and Weigl needs to he the one rotated out. Witsel is a ball winner who uses his body much better to shield the ball and keep away from opponets without losing it. Like Weigl, he is slow and that's his biggest detriment. Weigl got dispossessed on numerous occations tonight, especially when trying to dribble the ball out and his ball distribution is just slightly better than Witsel's.

Where I agree with you is that Dahoud should be given a chance next to Witsel as the "ballantreiber" who is able to provide the link-up play much quicker and bring fluidity into our game. The conundrum, however, is Brandt. He was a game changer tonight and his game is perfectly suited for that position as he has great vision and play-making abilities while also possessing a very good long range shot. Now, he can also play out wide instead of Hazard but would his abilities be wasted out wide within Dortmunds structure seeing as his ttpe would be much more impactful in a central role?

 

Weigl got lost the ball trying to do something with it. Today was far from his best day, but playing alongside Witsel hindered him. Both Witsel and Weigl had poor games today as did the full backs. It was why we could not get any good ball to our attackers. Weigl's ball distribution is a LOT better than Witsel's because it is just much faster. When Witsel is showing his strength, taking several touches and fighting off a defender, it may look impressive to some, but he is killing the move. By the time he finally makes the pass the move is dead.

Also today was not really a game for physical defending from the midfield, Cologne when long and they won the second balls or pressed to win the ball.

Brandt is simply too good to be shunted in anywhere. He should be tried on the left with lots of freedom to see how he does, but if does not have the same impact then he should play in the middle, even if it means Dahoud does not get a chance.

Witsel is slow, not elite technically and actually not super strong either. We don't have the physicality to match the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham in midfield. Playing Witsel we don't have the technique to match the likes of Barca, City, Madrid or Bayern. It's a terrible half way house where we get exposed. From the second half of last season, even average Bundesliga teams had worked out Witsel and knew hot to stop him. It's why we have struggled.

In the likes of Brandt, Sancho, Reus and Hummels we have some of the most technically gifted players for their position in the world. We need to fully commit to this.

 

The first half performance was terrible from all involved, but credit Favre and the players for making the necessary adjustment against a tenacious opponent. I don't think this match needs to be a (negative) referendum against any players in particular, but it underscored the crucial nature of having depth in each position with players who bring different skills to the table, as well as exposing some of the still-raw tactical chemistry. I think it was fully expected that Köln would come out pressing with their big strikers, and the team really needs to be able to adapt on the fly to find outlets for the buildup.

Weigl and Witsel struggled most conspicuously, but clearly LP and Schulz didn't function well as alternative paths carrying the ball into midfield. Obviously having Hummels around should be a game-changer in this respect, but more practice is probably needed to be able to quickly identify the optimal buildup lanes and evade the press.

Hazard and Schulz weren't great in attack either, and I think they sort of get in each other's way as direct, vertical players, and Ehizibue was clearly the type of right-back well equipped to deal with them. It made a big difference to bring on the right-footed Hakimi who is comfortable playing in the half-space and opening up space on the wing. Piszczek redeemed his evening with a nice assist but it might be time to give Hakimi a shot on the right side again.

We should thank Peter Bosz for unleashing Brandt in the center. It'll be great to see him play there more regularly, but Brandt also seems like a non-entity on the defensive side of the ball (not that Weigl was much better today in that respect), so Favre might hesitate to deploy that lineup when he's not desperate for a goal. Of course, he could do the same work as a nominal winger as well, especially if the fullback (e.g. Schulz) likes to play wide. I'm not sure where this leaves Götze given his wage demands.

All in all it's clear that this year's squad has a ton of quality and has a complementary set of talents. It'll be a fun season to watch.

BTW did anyone see the new Inside Borussia Dortmund documentary series on Amazon Prime? The 1st episode came out and while some of it is fluff, the interviews are mildly interesting. One interesting point is that it's abundantly clear how highly rated Witsel is, from Watzke and Zorc on down to Reus.

 

The amount of abuse Witsel gets from people on here who have yet to kick a football in their dreams. If you expect him to be the Kante of the squad then Reus should be the Ronaldo.

Before he joined us we had zero midfield presence and even under Thomas Tuchel after Gundogan left, we were overrun by bottom and midtable clubs.

Hummels was once again our best player over 90 min.

Hazard and Reus disappointed.

We need to stop playing with a no. 10 if Götze isnt playing. Reus is not a natural there and it shows.

Why not go with a 3 man midfield of Weigl,. Brandt and one of Dahoud (against deep sitting teams) or Witsel. Shift Reus to the left, replace LP with Hakimi.

I can see why Favre is conservative. He'd rather have hope than take unnecessary risks when the title is on the line.

 

Once again three points but no clean sheet. Sorry to rub it in, but it was these sorts of lapses that cost us the title last season.

 

Don't made digs about people, when you know nothing about their history. I was at Premier League youth academies and there is a chance I would have had a career at championship level, but my previous ability as a footballer does not matter. Mourinho and Sacchi two of the greatest coaches of all time show this.

Kante is not one of the best players of all time. Ronaldo for me is in the top 3 players of all time, so its ridiculous to compare Kante to him.

Secondly I expect Witsel to just be able to compete against other top teams. Fernandinho, Kante, Fabinho, Sissoko (was too physical for him), Casmeiro are just some of the many defensive players better than him.

I praised Witsel early on with us. I have nothing against him, but he had been found out. Since the winter break teams have worked him out and can stop him easily.

Yes and the same has been happening since January, let alone against top clubs. We are losing the midfield battle against everyone, this is what is holding us back. Gundogan actually gave little physicality, but he had intelligent movement and great technique. Brandt came on and changed the game completely.

It's funny, I criticise Witsel for poor performances, but you always make digs at Reus, the most loyal and best Dortmund player. Reus was poor today, but it had nothing to do with not being a 10. Reus is just much better than Gotze, Much, much better than Gotze. Sadly Gotze never fulfilled his potential due to the illness and poor career paths.

I don't really blame any of the attack in the first half, because our midfield failed to provide them with decent quality possession. Reus and Sancho, actually were in great spaces to receive the ball a lot, but Weigl did not have the courage to make the pass, whilst Witsel did not have the speed to make it.

When Brandt came on everything changed. We got lots of quality possession. Reus had a poor game, because he wasted a number of great chances. There were three or four times he was on the edge of the box and should have ended with a shot.

 

Excellent analysis. Both our full backs were poor, which accentuated the problem our midfielders were having. I don't think Hummels can do anything when 4 other key players to the build up (CMs and FBS) were so poor. Hazard did have a poor game, even when Brandt came on and changed things, but in the first half due to the lack of build up play he was starved off the ball.

Schulz just seemed to have a bad day in the office, but we have Hakimi to play. Let's see how he does in the future against a physical press.

The midfield was dominated and lost the key battle again. Even in the Bayern game, we were dominated in midfield. It has happened time and time again. Favre needs to wise up and change it or he will destroy our season.

 

Reus wasn't great yesterday, but he brings some leadership and that's important (although it does disappear sometimes sadly.) He also brings positive play and good combination with other attacking players. Last season he was a major part of our success playing the 10 position.

That being said, I don't mind moving him to the left if that'll give Brandt the chance to have more impact in the center as either a 10 or an 8. That will also keep Witsel in as the physical midfielder whether it's 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3. Witsel I think is another reason for our success last season: the fact that we have a stronger midfield compared to the Bosz/Stroger year. Although in the Tuchel years our midfield was weak because of the tactics: Weigl would often have too much space or too many players to cover in counter-attacks.

In fact, Reus is probably the second best player in our squad who can play winger after Sancho! (Although I'm not too familiar with Brandt as a winger.) So there's another reason for him to play on the left