Dortmund 1-0 PSG: Füllkrug's goal seals victory for hosts, Mbappe hits the post

If this is to be Kylian Mbappe’s last dance before departing for Real Madrid, he best come up with a pretty dazzling tango in Paris next week if he stands any chance of meeting his would-be suitors in the final.

Match Report

The only consolation for he and his team-mates is that they will probably settle for this scoreline, after a night in which they looked like the PSG of old, all divas and no direction. You would not bet against them turning the tie around, as they did against Barcelona in the quarter-final, but they will need to be far better than this.

Amid an occasion of vibrancy and illumination, Mbappe was booted into the shadows by home match-winner Niclas Fullkrug, not to mention man-of-the-match Jadon Sancho. Remember him?

The Manchester United outcast was outstanding, and the prospect of him playing in a Champions League final while his parent club fight to avoid dropping into the Conference League will not be lost on the player, nor those whose trust he did not have at Old Trafford.

They trust him here. In fact, give the ball to Sancho was as good a tactic as any. That Dortmund head to the French capital with just a one-goal advantage is not his fault. He laid on a series of second-half chances that should have been converted.

But what an intriguing and engaging contest this was. These teams survived the Group of Death and signed off with a draw that suited both in December, on a night when backs were scratched at this stadium. This time, they were trying to stick knives in them.

The first half was all about Dortmund’s ferocity. They led when Fullkrug, the late bloomer who made his Germany debut aged 29 just two years ago, suddenly morphed into Mbappe. Funny that, because Mbappe was playing like a journeyman centre-forward at the other end.

Fullkrug’s touch before finishing was not just a good touch for a big man, it was an outstanding touch for a player of any shape or size. Nico Schlotterbeck floated a ball in behind PSG’s backline, where the striker cushioned as if wearing a slipper on his right and smashed home as if fitted with a hammer on his left.

It created a noise that would have woken any residents of a non-football persuasion in this slumbersome city. It is a strange place, Dortmund, a charmless grey, even on a sunny day like this. Everything is grey as you leave the centre towards the stadium. Even the birds are all pigeons.

But then there is the Westfalenstadion, like a rising sun on the outskirts of town. Those slabs of grey are washed yellow here, an explosion of colour and unrelenting clatter. In a city that always sleeps, the football club is the stimulant. Last night, that assault on the senses was at its most fierce, an inspiration or an intimidation, depending on which side you were on.

Whatever happens, this will be the last Champions League game of the season here, and those in the Yellow Wall wanted to make it an uncomfortable one to scale for those in white. You’ll Never Walk Alone they chorused before kick-off. PSG’s players soon found they could not run anywhere without company, either. With this intent and intensity, it really does make you wonder how they have struggled domestically. They are currently fifth in the Bundesliga and may need the help of UEFA’s co-efficient to be playing in this competition next season.

Here, though, they set about cutting through the numbers. The simplest way to qualify is by winning June’s final at Wembley, of course, and you sensed Dortmund knew they would need to take a lead with them to Paris.

Marcel Sabitzer, the midfielder who served up 11 scoreless matches of little fondness at Manchester United, is a free-scoring fan favourite in Dortmund. It is easy to see why. He would have made it four goals in as many games if not for Gianluigi Donnarumma blocking a near-post shot early on.

But there was nothing the Italian keeper could do to stop Fullkrug’s bottom-corner blast in the 36th minute. PSG, meanwhile, entered the break without a single shot on target.

PSG boss Luis Enrique took on the press on the eve of the game, accusing them of knowing nothing about football. He was responding to a claim that his team were strong favourites to win here. Enrique, turns out, was onto something.

But the aggression the Spaniard had shown in the press room he must have replicated in the dressing-room at half-time, for his team emerged better in the second half. They couldn’t have been much worse.

Mbappe finally looked like a player wanted by Real Madrid - albeit for a five-minute spell in which he cracked the post and brought a decent save from Gregor Kobel. His effort that rebounded off the upright was followed up by team-mate Achraf Hakimi, who blasted against the other post. Midfielder Nuno Mendes then somehow contrived to head wide from six yards with PSG enjoying a brief ascendency.

One other number of note from the first half was that Sancho had completed seven dribbles, the most by a player in this season’s competition. He took that tally to nine when skipping by two defenders and pulling back for Fullkrug on the hour. His wild shot, however, hit the Wall.

Fullkrug then missed another chance easier than the one he had earlier taken, this time heading over from eight yards after connecting with Julian Brandt’s teasing free-kick. It was then the turn of Brandt to poke straight at Donnarumma after being freed by Sancho.

There will, then, be a little regret at opportunities missed. That did not stop the Yellow Wall swaying in merry song on full-time. They can only hope it is not their last dance.

Match Events

0' KICK-OFF! Who can win this match?

18' CLOSE! Dembele’s shot wide out

19' Yellow Card! Maatsen booked

31' SAVE! Donnarumma parries Sabitzer  shot

36' GOAL! Dortmund 1-0 PSG (Füllkrug)

53' OFF THE POST! Mbappe nearly scores for PSG!

57' CLOSE! Ruiz misses a golden chance!

80' Unbelievable! What a miss from Dembele!

Line-ups

Dortmund XI: Hummels, Sabitzer, Emre Can, Füllkrug, Brandt, Gregor Kobel, Julian Ryerson, Sancho, Karim Adeyemi, Nico Schlotterbeck, Maatsen

Subs: Reus, Alexander Meyer, Haller, Sule, Wolf, Özcan, Donyell Malen, Marcel Lotka, Felix Nmecha, Youssoufa Moukoko, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Kjell Wätjen

PSG XI: Marquinhos, Lucas, Dembele, Fabian Ruiz, Mbappe, Donnarumma, Hakimi, Vitinha, Nuno Mendes, Bradley Barcola, Warren Zaïre-Emery

Subs: Navas, Danilo Pereira, Skriniar, Asensio, Mukiele, Soler, Manuel Ugarte, Muani, Arnau Tenas, Kang-in Lee, Gonçalo Ramos, Lucas Beraldo