It’s been a slow start for Chelsea loanee Aaron Anselmino at Borussia Dortmund due to injury, but their supporters just got a look at the young defender.
On Tuesday night, German giants Dortmund ended up beating Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties in the second round of the DFB-Pokal. After extra time, the teams were still locked together at 1-1, but Dortmund ran out 4-2 winners in the shootout.
Aaron Anselmino, 20, made just his third appearance for the Bundesliga side, starting in central defence.
After missing several weeks through injury, the Chelsea loanee is now fit again and competing for a starting position. Hopefully, the ball-playing centre-half can force his way into Niko Kovac’s team on a regular basis.
Even though Anselmino massively impressed on his Dortmund debut back in August, he’s still a relatively new face because of his injury layoff.
Borussia Dortmund defender Aaron Anselmino passes the ball against Eintracht Frankfurt.
Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images
Borussia Dortmund fans massively impressed by Aaron Anselmino
Dortmund supporters on X were left really excited by Anselmino’s performance for them in the cup win against Frankfurt in midweek.
One fan wrote: “Aaron Anselmino is so good please sign him permanently.”
Another said: “He’s genuinely so class.”
One supporter posted: “Anselmino is such a machine
“Anselmino is generational,” another claimed.
In the summer, Anselmino expressed his desire to go out on loan, so it was fantastic to see him join Dortmund, who have a phenomenal track record of using and developing young stars.
We’ve seen in the past just how effective the loan system can be. Will Anselmino be the next player to make it at Stamford Bridge after a temporary spell away from Chelsea?
Borussia Dortmund's Aaron Anselmino competing with Eintracht Frankfurt's Nathaniel Brown.
Photo by Christian Kaspar-Bartke/Getty Images
Aaron Anselmino stats vs Eintracht Frankfurt
FOTMOB provided the individual stats for how Anselmino performed for Dortmund against Frankfurt:
Minutes played – 45
Accurate passes – 36/40 (90%)
Touches – 55
Tackles – 2
Dispossessed – 1
Interceptions – 3
Dribbled past – 0
Ground duels won – 3/7 (43%)
Aerial duels won – 2/2 (100%)
Was fouled – 1
Fouls committed – 2
Match rating – 7.1
It was a bit of a shame that the Chelsea-owned defender came off at half-time. However, he was living dangerously on a yellow card, plus it was his first start for a couple of months.
We’re excited to see if the Argentine centre-back can kick with Dortmund now he’s available.