Borussia Dortmund’s Bundesliga campaign continued this past week with a nail-biter of a fixture against VFL Bochum; a game that was made far more stressful than it needed to be by glaring defensive mistakes. These mistakes allowed Bochum to take a 2-1 lead in the first half, and Dortmund were only a whisker away from being 3-0 down, stopped only by Myron Boadu missing his chance to put the game firmly in Bochum’s control.

While the defense was very much suspect for much of the game, Dortmund’s offense created ample chances to take the lead. The first half saw quite a few chances go begging but they looked threatening throughout, and the final 4-2 score-line vindicates this.

Among those that made Dortmund’s attack tick was of course summer signing Serhou Guirassy. The former Stuttgart striker joined Die Schwarzgelben after an impeccable season at fellow Bundesliga side Stuttgart, and while some (including myself) may have had some reservations about his ability to re-create his goal-scoring form for Dortmund, he is certainly making those of us with doubts eat crow to great effect.

So far, the Guinea international has scored four goals in three appearances for Dortmund, netting both in the Champions League from the penalty spot as well as three in the Bundesliga, including Dortmund’s only goal against Stuttgart in their 5-1 defeat. Against Bochum, Guirassy proved to be far more pivotal, scoring in the first half to give Dortmund a lifeline, and then following up in the second half with another.

Guirassy adds an element of play that Dortmund have been missing for some time. Despite Niclas Füllkrug being a more than capable striker for Dortmund, Guirassy has taken this role to new heights with a combination of very solid link-up play, pace, and aerial threat. Some of these facets were of course centerpieces of Füllkrug’s game, but Guirassy adds far more mobility and variation to the front line.

It also helps that Dortmund has a few more players in their ranks now who play in accurate crosses (Pascal Groß and Yan Couto in particular) to supplement Julian Brandt in his efforts to feed a striker of Guirassy’s mold. As exemplified by his interplay with Karim Adeyemi for his second goal, he also highlighted that he is exemplary in terms of getting on the end of through-balls in the box and scoring from such chances, which wasn’t exactly Füllkrug’s forte.

After the game, Guirassy gave a pitch-side interview where he described his feelings about the game, and he noted his shock in terms of how the game began but believed that he and his teammates could turn it around:

“After the 0-2 [I asked myself] what’s happening here? It was so crazy but I knew we could completely change the game, and we did it, but it was a tough game…It was really, excuse me for the word, f****d up in the head for sure…but we spoke a lot this week about changing some behavior…of course [today’s performance] was good mentality because to [come back] 4-2 to 0-2 is a great job.”

– Serhou Guirassy post match via ESPN

Guirassy was a very big factor in that turnaround, and the multiple dimensions in his playstyle made that possible in part. His performance was the source of praise from teammates and head coach Nuri Şahin. Şahin hailed the player’s performance and his ability to motivate and lead his teammates.:

“We’re all very, very happy he’s with us. I’m not just glad he’s scoring, but also how he carries himself. He was one of the players who brought clarity at halftime. We brought him in not only to lead on the pitch but also off it.”

– Nuri Şahin

With Guirassy putting in such pivotal performances, the stage is set for yet another stellar goal tally for the player. Despite being a late bloomer in terms of his status as a prolific goalscorer, he is on track to dispel any doubts about his ability to be a player that helps decide Dortmund’s fortunes for the coming campaign.