[Borussia Dortmund](https://www.fearthewall.com) are currently sat in 10th place in the Bundesliga table with 35 points (W10/D5/L10) while, at the same time, heading into the last eight of the [Champions League](https://www.sbnation.com/champions-league), where they will face Barcelona. BVB giveth; BVB taketh away.
We saw the best and, briefly, the worst of this Dortmund team yesterday, as they came back from 1-0 down to beat Lille 2-1 away from home and stay alive in the Champions League. BVB got off to a terrible start when multiple players came together to collectively gift Jonathan David the opening goal on the night just five minutes into the game. But from then on Niko Kovač’s Dortmund started punching back for the first time in a couple games, even looking good doing it. It took until the second half for BVB to bloody Lille’s nose. Serhou Guirassy won an dubious penalty and Emre Can converted, levelling the game and giving Dortmund renewed belief. It wasn’t all one-way traffic. Still, BVB were clearly the better side, and they deserved their winner. It was scored by Maximilian Beier just after the hour.
BVB showed their ugly side that has held them back so often this season, but they also showed what they are capable of when everyone plays to their level. They will need to show a lot more of the latter if they are going to defeat Barcelona in the quarter-finals, but as long as they are still alive in the Champions League, they’ve got a chance.
Here are our ratings from Borussia Dortmund’s 2-1 win against Lille.
Starting XI
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### Gregor Kobel
**Paul: 4**
Kobel made an awful mistake to concede the opening goal five minutes into the game, and as much as he clawed a lot of that back with some good saves in the second half, it’s hard to look past that glaring error.
**Patrick: 3**
A simple goalkeeping error from the Swiss shotstopper forced Dortmund to fight an uphill battle against Lille. Goalkeeping cannot be an issue if Dortmund wish to progress or climb the Bundesliga table. Fortunately, the team was able to come back and Kobel made three good saves in the second half.
### Waldemar Anton
**Paul: 5**
**Patrick: 5**
Waldemar’s last Bundesliga start game was in early February, and the center-back had been nursing an injury coming into this game. He was deployed as a left-back in this match and at times looked very uncomfortable. Anton was Dortmund’s worst defender in transition and ultimately lost possession in the lead up to Lille’s goal. He looked more stable when Dortmund had time to set up their defense but ultimately was a liability throughout the match.
### Nico Schlotterbeck
**Paul: 7**
Like so many others, Schlotterbeck had a part to play in the collective calamity that gifted Lille their opening goal. Unlike Kobel I think Schlotterbeck’s error was only in the “could have done better” territory, and unlike Anton, Schlotterbeck made amends by putting in a strong performance for the remainder of the match.
**Patrick 7**
I liked what I saw from Schlotterbeck and would have opted for an 8 apart from his involvement in Lille’s opener. Dortmund’s star center-back was caught standing too far from Jonathan David and ultimately gave the Canadian space to shoot.
### Emre Can
**Paul: 9**
Can was impeccable throughout, getting the job done both in and out of possession. I think he has been solid all season, but he has really taken it up a notch since Kovač came in.
**Patrick 9**
Can was the best player on the pitch.
### Julian Ryerson
**Paul: 7**
**Patrick: 7**
Ryerson was _very_ involved in this match with the Norwegian notching 22(!) duels across his 90 minute shift. There were times where Ryerson looked to be Dortmund’s protagonist and pushed play forward and was willing to challenge for the ball. He almost notched a Gittens-esque goal and created a match high 6 chances.
Ultimately his defensive efforts let him down as he was dribbled past a whopping five times and often caught further up the field.
### Pascal Groß
**Paul: 7**
**Patrick: 6**
Groß stayed centrally in this match and was taken off set-piece duty. I think this should be adopted going forward because the German seemingly retained his stamina and was able to contest Lille’s midfield for all 85 minutes he was on the pitch.
### Marcel Sabitzer
**Paul: 8**
**Patrick: 8**
Looked good throughout the match but hit a second gear in the second half. You can give him some grief for his role in Lille’s opening goal but ultimately I don’t see Sabitzer as the main culprit. His defensive efforts in the final 10 minutes alone earn him an 8.
### Julian Brandt
**Paul: 5**
There were some flashes of quality, but it wasn’t a great performance from Brandt. He was less wasteful, and helped BVB in transition, but he still struggled to impact the game.
**Patrick 6**
### Karim Adeyemi
**Paul: 6**
**Patrick: 6**
Adeyemi hit the woodwork in the second half and looked poised to make an impact throughout the game. He was willing to drop back and assist Anton as the center-back struggled with pace.
### Maximilian Beier
**Paul: 7**
While you can’t fault the effort, I didn’t think Beier left much of a mark in the first half. It wasn’t until after the break that he sprung to life and started to have some success. Beier’s goal was wonderfully taken, and he played more confidently after scoring.
**Patrick:** 8
Beier’s quiet first-half should be completely forgotten after his second-half performance. Not only did the German get a goal, but he looked like Dortmund’s most threatening player in the second half.
### Serhou Guirassy
**Paul: 7**
I thought Guirassy was pretty effective despite not getting as many looks at goal as he would have liked. He linked up really nicely with Ryerson to provide the assist for Beier’s winner.
**Patrick: 8**
Despite not getting a goal, I thought Guirassy was great in this match. The striker occasionally had to drop deep but he was willing to challenge Lille’s midfield for the ball and often came out on top. His build up for Dortmund’s second goal was clinical and he did well to win the penalty.
Substitutes
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### Ramy Bensebaini
**Paul: 6**
**Patrick: 7**
Came on and added some additional defensive stability and speed to the backline. Did well but did not completely change the game.
### Jamie Gittens
**N/A**
### Carney Chukwuemeka
**N/A**
### Gio Reyna
**N/A**
### Salih Özcan
**N/A**
Overall
-------
**Paul: 7**
Even without the calamity of errors to kick the game off, BVB’s defense looked a little shakier than in recent performances under Kovač. Dortmund were pushing the pace, trying to turn the game around, and it resulted in a wide-open second half. Despite this, BVB always looked the more likely to score after Lille’s opener. It was a good performance and a deserved win.
Lille are a solid side and Dortmund did pretty well to go to France and get the win. BVB fans often complain that the team doesn’t show enough fight, but they showed plenty on Wednesday night.
**Patrick: 8**
Dortmund had one objective, win or go home, and almost immediately started the game down a goal. For one of the few times this year, the side showed some tenacity and fought their way back into this game. Kobel’s mistake was an obvious blunder but Dortmund ultimately felt like the deserved winners. The next round will be much harder but hopefully Dortmund will have some wind in their sails.