Lille showcased a revitalised effort in the second half to secure a 1-1 stalemate against Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 clash at Signal Iduna Park, extending their unbeaten streak to three European matches against German teams (W1, D2).
It took Dortmund 22 minutes to find the net in their first competitive encounter with Lille in over two decades, as Karim Adeyemi delivered a goal befitting the elite European stage. The 23-year-old skillfully positioned himself at the edge of the box, waiting for the ball to arrive from a corner, before striking it perfectly to send it past the unmoving Lucas Chevalier.
The hosts maintained control of the match, leaving Lille to struggle to make an impact during a one-sided first half. The visitors were fortunate to enter halftime only one goal down, as Pascal Groß had a close-range strike disallowed for offside just before the break.
Following some motivational words from Bruno Génésio at halftime, Lille emerged with renewed confidence. However, their attacking efforts faced staunch resistance from a Dortmund defence that had recorded four clean sheets in their last five games.
Lille’s persistence paid off in the 68th minute when Hákon Arnar Haraldsson slotted the ball past Gregor Kobel after being set up by Jonathan David.
Following their equaliser, Niko Kovač’s side struggled to respond effectively and could not regain the commanding presence they had shown in the first half.
Ultimately, Lille managed to see out the final moments of the match with relative ease, securing a hard-earned draw to take back to France.
Les Dogues can take confidence from their performance, as they aim for their first-ever Champions League quarter-final. Meanwhile, Dortmund will need to step up in the return leg in France if they wish to emulate last season’s journey to the final.
Catch a summary of the match here
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
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