Substitute Malen’s late strike lifts Dortmund past Sturm Graz

DORTMUND, Germany: Donyell Malen came off the bench and scored the only goal as Borussia Dortmund ground out a 1-0 home win over Sturm Graz in the Champions League on Tuesday.

A visibly weary Dortmund, nursing a mounting injury list, were missing eight regular starters and had only one senior professional, Malen, on the bench. Malen struck five minutes from time after stealing possession as Graz played out from the back, linking up with Serhou Guirassy to secure Dortmund their third win from four Champions League games.

“They’re a hard team to play against but at the end we got our reward,” Dortmund coach Nuri Sahin told DAZN. “Hats off to the lads, they didn’t stop running. What they did isn’t normal,” he added.

“I’m happy for Donnie (Malen). I told him we needed intensity from the bench and he brought that today.” Despite playing a week after going to extra time in a German Cup loss at Wolfsburg and three days since a gritty home victory over RB Leipzig, Sahin was forced into naming an unchanged XI.

Last season’s Champions League runners-up dominated possession but were unable to take advantage of the difference in class with their Austrian opponents. Graz’s 2.06-metre tall goalkeeper Kjell Scherpen impressed, particularly in the first half as he saved shots from Marcel Sabitzer and Maximilian Beier. With just a minute remaining in the first half and Scherpen beaten, Graz captain Otar Kiteishvili saved a certain goal by clearing a Beier shot off the line.

The hosts continued to camp out near the Graz penalty box but lost their zip as the game went on, with Sahin bringing Malen from the bench. Getting within inches of a tap-in just moments after coming on, the Dutchman’s freshness was noticeable and he would prove the difference, putting Dortmund ahead in the closing minutes.

“We didn’t let anything through the whole game, had many chances and scored a very late goal at the end,” said Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck. “It doesn’t matter to me how we get the three points -- we finally kept a clean sheet, I’m very pleased.”