Bundesliga: Dortmund's Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho show what RB Leipzig miss

Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho once again came to the fore as Borussia Dortmund delivered an impressive second-half display to beat RB Leipzig. The pair's clinical displays highlighted RB's lack of a real goalscorer.

RB Leipzig 1-3 Borussia Dortmund, RedBullArena (Sorloth 90' — Sancho 55', Haaland 70', 84')

Borussia Dortmund really don’t do first halves this season. But thankfully for interim coach Edin Terzic, they do have players capable of being prolific at the top level.

After breaking an unusual goalscoring drought last weekend, Jadon Sancho stroked home a smartly-worked opener then delivered the cross that allowed Erling Haaland to nod home his 11th goal in 10 league appearances.

The Norwegian settled matters late on, rounding the keeper after a cute reverse pass from Marco Reus. Between them, Sancho and Haaland have scored 43 goals in their last 70 Bundesliga appearances.

The loss of Timo Werner, the only man capable of putting up those sort of goalscoring numbers for RB Leipzig, was keenly felt on Saturday, as Leipzig failed the latest examination of their title-winning credentials.

Leipzig’s central front players, Yussuf Poulsen and Emil Forsberg, have notched 54 goals in five years and 220 combined appearances since promotion in 2016-17. Though both have their own qualities, it’s clear neither is a true goalscorer.

Though the numbers don’t tell the whole story, and were far from the only reason for Dortmund’s win, the lack of a coldblooded penalty box predator must now be troubling Julian Nagelsmann, who admitted his side "lacked punch in the final third."

Alexander Sorloth's goal, an injury-time consolation, was the striker's first in 10 Bundesliga attempts. The Red Bull-backed side have scored 20 goals fewer than Bayern and the same total (26 in 15 games) as 11th-placed Stuttgart.

Haaland gets it done

So far, they've found a way, more often than not, by relying on a talented and disciplined defense. But with Poulsen consistently losing his battles with Mats Hummels, Leipzig were playing a dangerous game allowing their visitors to grow in to the contest.

Haaland, Reus and Sancho combined for the opener and at least two of the trio were involved in both subsequent goals. Though Reus is still not quite at his best, the individual ability of that trio means Dortmund always pose a significant threat.

Players like Haaland don't come along often, and they rarely appear in January, but Saturday night's display must prompt some serious thought from Nagelsmann. Dani Olmo's solo strike on to the post aside, Leipzig didn't work Roman Bürki at all.

"We were the better team in the first half, but if we don't create any clear chances then you can have as much of the ball as you want," lamented Poulsen after the game.

Words spark change

Though another tepid firsthalf display will likely be of concern to Terzic, who has now won three of his four league games in charge, Dortmund looked like a different side after the break. However, there remains a nagging concern that his side are re