The serene calm of a 0-0 draw belied Borussia Dortmund's fortitude on their journey to the Champions League last 16, as they brushed aside Sporting CP with an unerring sense of control and purpose. The night at Signal Iduna Park may not have had the fireworks of goals, but the aggregate 3-0 scoreline was enough to propel Niko Kovac's men into the latter stages where they will vie for European glory.
Guirassy's Night of Mixed Fortunes
BVB's leading man in the goal-scoring department, Serhou Guirassy, was the protagonist of a chapter he might wish to forget. The striker, perched at the apex of the Champions League scoring charts, faced the ignominy of a penalty miss—a hiccup in an otherwise smooth campaign. As the hour mark approached, Karim Adeyemi's swift surge into the box was illegally halted by Sporting's Rui Silva, setting the stage for Guirassy. However, Silva redeemed himself with a fine save that denied Dortmund an extension of their lead.
Sporting's goalkeeper Rui Silva offered a beacon of resistance amidst a challenging outing for the Portuguese outfit. With five crucial stops, including the pivotal denial of Guirassy's penalty, Silva's efforts were commendable, though ultimately futile in Sporting's quest to overturn their first-leg setback. Even Emre Can's moment of elevation, finding the back of the net, was short-lived, chalked off to maintain the night's goalless narrative.
Dortmund's Dominance Despite a Penalty Misstep
The penalty miss by Guirassy marked a rare blip for Dortmund in the grand scheme of Champions League nights. The last instance a Dortmund player failed to convert from the spot was Marco Reus against Barcelona in September 2019. Even with this miss, the Guinean's past record had been spotless, with five penalties scored in succession before facing Silva's resolve. Borussia Dortmund demonstrated their superiority in every other facet, barely breaking a sweat against Sporting, who sorely missed their charismatic frontman, Viktor Gyokeres.
Underlying Dortmund's performance was a thread of consistent European campaigns, reaching the last 16 for the third consecutive year. They have built upon last season's zenith—second only to Real Madrid—in asserting their Champions League pedigree. With this achievement, they now find themselves gunning for further progress, looking ahead to potential opponents Aston Villa or Lille in an intriguing last 16 draw.
Sporting's Knockout Stage Conundrum
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Sporting's record in the knockout stages continues to be one of unfulfilled promise. In a statistic that will do little to uplift the spirits in Lisbon, only Celtic surpass their record of participating in the knockout games without securing victory. Sporting's drab performance, marked by a lack of cutting edge upfront, perpetuated this unwanted trend, with the Portuguese side unable to muster more than a paltry 0.34 expected goals over the course of the tie.
Borussia Dortmund can look forward with optimism and focus. The Black and Yellows will await their round of 16 adversary with a composed confidence, ready to carve out more chapters in their storied Champions League saga.