Borussia Dortmund run riot as Celtic’s ‘acid test’ turns sour

DORTMUND – A first-half hat-trick by Borussia Dortmund’s Karim Adeyemi helped the German side to a 7-1 hammering of a “spooked” Celtic side in the Champions League on Oct 1, with five goals in the opening 42 minutes.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers had likened the match to an “acid test” for his side, who had won all nine of their previous games this season, including a 5-1 trouncing of Slovan Bratislava in their opening Champions League tie.

But the acid test turned sour pretty quickly. After both teams’ fans had sung their shared anthem You’ll Never Walk Alone, Celtic were very much on their own at the Westfalenstadion as last season’s beaten finalists ran riot.

Adeyemi, 22, became the first Dortmund player to score a first-half hat-trick in Europe since 2002, while Emre Can and Serhou Guirassy both converted from the spot for a 5-1 half-time lead, with Daizen Maeda replying for the Scottish side.

Guirassy scored a second after the break, before substitute Felix Nmecha completed the rout.

The massive victory sent Dortmund to the top of the 36-team standings, with two wins from two matches while Celtic plunged from third to 19th.

“We scored seven goals, so it was a really good night. We can reach the final again if we keep playing like this,” said German international Adeyemi, who was taken off early in the second half.

Dortmund coach Nuri Sahin said his team set the bar high.

“We were always looking to go forward, and we’re difficult to beat when we play like that. I was incredibly pleased with the amount of effort we put in,” said Sahin, whose men face Real Madrid on Oct 22 in a repeat of last season’s Wembley final.

Rodgers, meanwhile, said that that his men might have got “spooked” a little bit early, adding: “We felt we were in a really good place. We had to start much better than we did, as we gave away really cheap goals. And we got punished for loose bits of play and passes.”

There was another big victory as Robert Lewandowski struck twice for hosts Barcelona in a 5-0 demolition of Swiss side Young Boys.

The Catalan giants, who had lost to Monaco in their opening match, also scored through Raphinha, Inigo Martinez and an own goal from Mohamed Camara.

Barcelona fans were pleased to see Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong come on as a substitute for his first appearance since an ankle injury in April, as the game petered towards a close at their temporary home, Barcelona’s Olympic Stadium.

Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny was watching from the stands, with the Catalan side announcing on Oct 2 that they have signed the former Juventus and Arsenal shot-stopper to replace the injured Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Meanwhile, Inter Milan, who drew 0-0 with Manchester City in their opening game, swept aside Red Star Belgrade 4-0 at the San Siro.

A stunning free kick from Hakan Calhanoglu opened the scoring in the 11th minute under a downpour in northern Italy, before Simone Inzaghi’s men extended their lead through Marko Arnautovic, Lautaro Martinez and Mehdi Taremi (penalty).

AC Milan, however, lost 1-0 at the BayArena, where Victor Boniface scored to give hosts Bayer Leverkusen their second Champions League win in as many games. REUTERS, AFP