Borussia Dortmund secured top spot in Group D, despite being held to a 1-1 draw by Anderlecht at Signal Iduna Park this evening.
Ciro Immobile handed the hosts the lead with an emphatic finish just before the hour mark, but Anderlecht remained strong to claim a point when Aleksandar Mitrovic headed home late on.
Match statistics
BORUSSIA DORTMUND
Shots: 19
On target: 9
Possession: 63%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 10
ANDERLECHT
Shots: 8
On target: 3
Possession: 37%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 7
Was the result fair?
There's no arguing the fact that Dortmund dominated the game, but it would be difficult to find a neutral who doesn't believe that Anderlecht deserved a point. It was the Belgian side that created the better chances in the first half, and their determined defensive display allowed them to stay with the hosts until scoring a late equaliser. Dortmund had the chances to kill the game off, but a mix of poor finishing and an impressive goalkeeping display from Silvio Pronto kept the match alive. In the end, Anderlecht deserved the point they claimed.
Borussia Dortmund's performance
It was another frustrating evening for Jurgen Klopp and his players, but luckily the draw didn't make any difference in Group D. However, the problems continue to pile up and the home fans will still be disappointed that Dortmund couldn't secure all three points against Anderlecht. For much of the night the defence looked comfortable, but the pace of Anderlecht's counters did cause problems in the first half. Ilkay Gundogan and Nuri Sahin were in fine form in the centre of midfield, and the likes of Shinji Kagawa and Henrikh Mkhitaryan were lively throughout the match.
Quite simply, the finishing was not good enough. Proto was in fine form, but Mkhitaryan and Immobile in particular missed too many chances to secure the victory. There's still a lot of work for this Dortmund side to do, and they will have to learn these lessons before the knockout stages.
Anderlecht's performance
Besnik Hasi's charges were tipped to go through Group D without collecting a point, but the young squad proved their quality once again this evening. An attack loaded with pace always looked capable of creating chances on the break, while Chancel Mbemba and Olivier Deschacht both produced excellent performances in defence. On another night, the visitors could have been ahead before the break, but they showed great spirit to keep the game alive before securing the draw.
Anderlecht did enough in Group D to earn a place in the knockout stages of the Europa League, and this was another performance which suggests that they could go far in that competition.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Silvio Proto: If it wasn't for Proto, the match would have been over after an hour. However, he appeared to be on a mission to frustrate the Dortmund attack as he made a number of stunning saves to deny Immobile, Mkhitaryan and Kagawa. If you're going to record a positive result in Dortmund, you will have to withstand pressure. Luckily for Anderlecht, they had a goalkeeper at the top of his game.
Biggest gaffe
Mitrovic sprinted clear of the Dortmund defence when it was goalless in the first half. The forward had all the time in the world to pick his spot, but he could only fire a shot straight at Mitchell Langerak. A goal for the visitors at that stage would have changed the game, but the forward was fortunate enough to make up for the miss by heading in a late equaliser.
Referee performance
Alberto Mallenco was on solid form for most of the evening, but he did make one big mistake. Sahin's guilty face told the full story after he had tripped Ibrahima Conte inside the box. However, the Spanish referee refused to listen to the protests from the visitors.
What next?
Dortmund: Klopp's side are back in action against Hertha Berlin on Saturday afternoon.
Anderlecht: The Belgian champions will be boosted from the draw heading into Sunday's meeting with KV Oostende.
Callum Mulvihill
