Al Wasl put up spirited fight against their German opponents

Dubai - The all familiar Dortmund yellow and black colours got the weekend crowd to appreciate their sturdy and consistent brand of soccer, so typical of all German outfits.

 Borussia Dortmund, fired up by a superb brace by forward Jonas Schneck, defeated a fighting Al Wasl side 2-0 in the opening match of the sixth Hamdan bin Mohammed Football Championship U17 at the Dubai Police Officers' Club stadium, Friday evening.
In a late match, Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal drubbed Dubai's Hatta FC 9-0.
The all familiar Dortmund yellow and black colours got the weekend crowd to appreciate their sturdy and consistent brand of soccer, so typical of all German outfits. Player of the Match, the tireless worker Marius von Cysewski, was instrumental in weaving passing patterns around the Al Wasl midfielders and defenders, and this helped the visitors' accurate carpet passes throughout the first period.
The Germans had to wait till the 38th minute to open their account when a passing combo between Schneck, the creative Ozkan Terzioglu and Franco Di Pierro saw Schneck giving the finishing touches with a tap-in from close distance.
Hardly had the cheers died down from among the handful of supporters for the visitors when Schneck, the tallest player on the field sent in another tap-in - this time off a measured cross from skipper Tobias Raschl in the 44th minute.
The second half continued with the more authoritative German moves becoming more and more dangerous off long passes. For Al Wasl the hardworking Saif Al Muhairi was a big presence in the midfield operations. Open chances were few for the home side though Omar Mohammed's header off a superb cross by Salah Mohammed went inches above the cross piece in added time of the second half.
Christian Fluthmann, the Dortmund coach said: "Initially we were trying to get used to the surface and weather conditions which for us is hot and humid. That is why we resorted to the short passing style and as we got used to the fine turf here."
Al Wasl coach Khalifa Al Shamsi, said: "I was very happy to see our inexperienced and less exposed side contain the Germans till the 38th minute."
moni@khaleejtimes.com