Borussia Dortmund failed to claim third place in the table, as they dropped two points on the road in a 1-1 draw against Mainz on Sunday night, producing yet another uninspiring performance.
Positives
The Black and Yellows had a bright start, overwhelming the hosts with an exhilarating amount of pace. They took the lead and arguably could have added a second in the first 10 minutes. However, the blast of energy seemed to be the afterburner, as there was little to come out of them in the following 80 minutes. Dortmund can be happy that they held down Mainz to a low amount of chances.
Negatives
The seventh draw of the season means another setback in what was supposed to be a "race to catch up". Thomas Tuchel will come under more scrutiny as his team seems to have little clue on how to bring the ball into the danger zone when building the match from the back. The Dortmund coach said that he wants to see more possession with purpose, but that didn't show in Mainz. The hosts did well to keep the Ruhr side away from their own goal over long periods at the game. More worrying for Dortmund is that they look fatigued after 70 minutes on a regular basis. After Danny Latza scored the equaliser in the 83rd minute, Tuchel's men failed to produce any threat that could have yielded in a winner.
Manager rating out of 10
4 -- His team is in dire need of fresh ideas on how to create chances.
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Roman Burki, 5 -- Wasn't all that busy and could have kept Latza's header out with a bit more luck, as it slipped between him and the near post.
DF Lukasz Piszczek, 6 -- The Polish right-back had an excellent game, shutting Mainz down on his right side. Though he was a couple of steps too late to defend Levin Oztunali's marvellous cross.
DF Sokratis Papastathopoulos, 7 -- Strong-armed the Mainz attack with hardly any errors in his positioning. A good game from the centre-back.
DF Matthias Ginter, 5 -- Was lucky in the first half when the linesmen wrongfully flagged Yoshinori Muto offside. Otherwise he would have received the blame for yet another goal. Otherwise a much-improved performance from last week.
DF Marcel Schmelzer, 6 -- Similar to Piszczek, Schmelzer showed a solid performance on the left side in his 300th competitive game for the club.
MF Julian Weigl, 5 -- Assured on the ball as always, but hardly found a defence-splitting pass to create any threat.
MF Andre Schurrle, 5 -- A hardworking Schurrle set up Dortmund's goal for Reus nicely, but couldn't provide any real threat afterwards. But it would be harsh to blame it on Schurrle rather than on BVB's structural problems.
MF Gonzalo Castro, 5 -- Castro was great at backtracking -- some of it self-inflicted. In the final 20 minutes, it was him who tried to put pressure on Mainz's defenders to stifle the build-up play, but he lacked the support to make it worthwhile. Question marks remain behind his creative momentum.
MF Raphael Guerreiro, 5 -- His roulette to manoeuvre himself out of a tight situation may be included in several video compilations, but it is the structure he provides in Dortmund's midfield that makes him so valuable. Though the 60+ minutes showed, that he still needs a few games to find his grip.
MF Marco Reus, 6 -- In the third minute Reus had the entire left side to himself when he was played in by Schurrle. Scoring has become a formality for the 27-year-old, who netted for the 11th time in 16 games against the Rheinhessen.
FW Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, 4 -- Aubameyang bought himself a mansion in Dortmund some weeks ago, but couldn't buy himself a clean first touch in this match. His shift ended after 71 minutes.
Substitutes
MF Mario Gotze, 5 -- Once Germany's poster boy, Gotze's omission from the starting lineup always seems a headline. In the 26 minutes he played, however, there was little to suggest why Tuchel should put him on the team sheet.
MF Ousmane Dembele, NR -- Brought on in the 71st minute, Dembele was unable to find his way into the match. This was in part due to the little service BVB's attacking midfield received in general, but his coach will be aggravated by his lackadaisical backtracking, which granted Mainz the space to carry the ball into Dortmund's defensive third prior to the goal.
MF Christian Pulisic, NR -- Didn't get the chance to have a positive influence on the game with just five minutes left to play, as his team was busy trying to avoid conceding a late goal.