Monaco 0-2 Borussia Dortmund: Report, Ratings & Reaction as BVB Victory Seals Top Spot in Group A
Borussia Dortmund confirmed themselves as Group A winners in a 2-0 win against Thierry Henry's Monaco at Stade Louis II, eliminating the principality side in the process.
Having beaten Monaco 3-0 in the reverse fixture, Lucien Favre's men were true to form, beating Monaco thanks to brace from Raphael Guerreiro. The Ligue 1 strugglers were already doomed to finish bottom of the group for the second consecutive year, but Favre will will be buoyed by his side's dominant performance.
Raphaël Guerreiro opened the scoring for Dortmund, as Christian Pulisic passed it out to Max Philipp, who crossed the ball for Guerreiro to tuck it in unmarked from close range after 15 minutes.
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Monaco were much better in the second half, playing like a team who had nothing to lose. They earned themselves a couple of corners as the whistle was blown, and started to test Hitz in the BVB goal.
But Guerreiro's second on the 88-minute mark put the game well and truly to bed thanks to a Paco Alcácer assist. It was a scrappy affair full of fouls and large dosages of yellow cards, but Dortmund got the job done in the end.
By beating Monaco, BVB went ahead of Atlético who take second place after their 0-0 draw with Club Brugge.
Check out our round-up of the game below.
Borussia Dortmund
Key Talking Point
Having already secured progression before this game, Dortmund have now gone one better and finished as group winners.
Lucien Favre's decision to rest some of his key players, after winning a heated derby against Schalke at the weekend, was a success as they cruised to a relatively comfortable win.
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With man of the moment Jadon Sancho out of the matchday squad on compassionate leave, and in the absence of regulars Marco Reus, Thomas Delaney, Lukasz Piszczek, Jacob Bruun Larsen, and Axel Witsel, Dortmund performed well and got the job done.
That was thanks to Guerreiro's brace, whose man of the match performance earned his side a deserved win. By topping the group in scrappy yet effective style, they have set themselves up, in theory, for a smoother ride in the knockout stages.
Player Ratings
Starting XI: Hitz (7); Hakimi (8), Diallo (8), Toprak (8), Schmelzer (7); Dahoud (8), Weigl (7); Pulisic (7), Götze (8), Guerreiro (9); Philipp (8)
Substitutes: Alcácer (7),Gómez Martín (N/A), Wolf (4)
Star Man: Guerreiro grabbed this opportunity with both hands and was suitably impressive on the night, scoring both of Dortmund's goals.
He took his second well and has surely played himself into Favre's long-term plans after a truly standout performance.
Worst Player
Julian Weigl was suspect in midfield for Dortmund - his hesitancy and poor reading of the play was a worry throughout the night for Die Schwarzgelben.
The defensive midfielder, who has been linked with moves to the Premier League in recent months, lacked his usual composure on the ball and on this evidence, may have played his way out of a few manager's transfer plans.
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He picked up a yellow for a poor challenge and didn't do enough to secure the middle of the park, despite Monaco's lack of quality.
Monaco
Key Talking Point
Already assured of finishing bottom of Group A, Monaco were looking to play for pride at Stade Louis II. Falcao was a live wire for the principality club, but failed to score on the night.
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Thierry Henry will be dismayed at his team's poor showing at home, with his defensive players at fault for both of Guerreiro's goals.
Player Ratings
Starting XI: Benaglio (5); Biancone (4), Glik (5), Badiashile Mukinayi (5), Raggi (5); Henrichs (5), Tielemans (5), Aït Bennasser (5), Massengo (5); Diop (4), Falcao (6)
Substitutes: Serrano (4), Sylla (4), Thuram-Ulien (4)
Star Man: RadamelFalcao's pedigree as a player is still indisputable, despite not being at his best for a some time now. When Monaco won Ligue 1 in the 2016-17 season he was at times unplayable, finishing the season as top-scorer with 30 goals in 43 appearances.
Falcao picked up a yellow for a striker's tackle and lived up to his nickname by putting in some tigerish challenges for Monaco.
As the first half drew to a close, Monaco began to show more attacking enterprise, earning a corner and trying harder to get Falcao in the box. The Colombian found his feet as the game went on, taking on a shot that only just missed the top corner.
Worst Player
Giulian Biancone struggled to keep up with Dortmund's attack and was part of the defence that switched off for Dortmund's opener.
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He didn't cover himself in glory with a handball, nor his inability to keep control of the ball against Dortmund's front line. He would have been glad to have been taken off with around ten minutes left to play.
Looking Ahead
With the group stages over and their immediate future in the Champions League looking good, Dortmund take on Werder Bremen at home as they look to further establish their seven point lead in the Bundesliga.
Meanwhile, Monaco travel to high-flying Lyon as they optimistically look to get a result and pull themselves clear of the Ligue 1 relegation battle.
