Borussia Dortmund vs. FC Koln – Football match report – March 18, 2023

Borussia Dortmund climbed to the top of the Bundesliga table after beating visiting Cologne 6-1 on Saturday, with Sebastien Haller and captain Marco Reus scoring two goals each.

The Ruhrpott club, who last won the Bundesliga title under then-coach Jürgen Klopp in 2012, underscored their title ambitions by smashing their opponents with an explosive first-half performance of four goals.

– LIVE Stream: Bayer Leverkusen vs Bayern Munich Sunday, 12:20pm ET, ESPN+

Dortmund now have 53 points, one ahead of Bayern Munich ahead of Sunday’s game against Bayer Leverkusen. RB Leipzig is third with 45 tables after the surprising 1-0 defeat against the ailing VfL Bochum.

“We showed a really good game today, we started well and took control straight away. The boys are having fun out there,” Dortmund coach Edin Terzic said at a press conference.

“Today we took a step in the right direction, especially in terms of efficiency. From the goalkeeper to the striker, everyone showed a great performance and didn’t let up a moment.”

The Bundesliga will resume on Friday, March 31 after an international break.

“We are happy to go into the international break with this result. All in all, we’re satisfied with our game and our rhythm,” added Terzic.

Raphael Guerreiro, who also scored against Schalke last week, opened Dortmund’s account in the 15th minute after Donyell Malen did an excellent job down the wing.

Côte d’Ivoire striker Haller, fully fit after undergoing cancer treatment earlier in the season, thundered in two minutes later after a quick pass.

With Cologne catching up, it was only a matter of time before Dortmund scored again after almost half an hour and Reus stormed in confidently before Malen also hit the goal with a powerful shot that keeper Marvin Schwaebe was unable to parry.

Cologne caught their breath briefly in the 42nd round when Davie Selke reduced the deficit with his first goal for the club, but despite a slower pace after the break, Dortmund scored twice more within two minutes.

Haller converted his second goal from a Mo Dahoud free-kick that bounced off the crossbar and Reus scored 150 Bundesliga goals in the 70s and 161 goals in all competitions for the club.