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German media deliver honest verdicts on Chelsea loanee Ian Maatsen’s Champions League final display

Milo Clay

Sun 2 June 2024 8:35, UK

The German media have delivered their verdicts on Chelsea loanee Ian Maatsen’s Champions League final display last night.

Ian Maatsen suffered heartache with Borussia Dortmund as the Bundesliga giants fell to a 2-0 defeat to Real Madrid at Wembley.

Dortmund were by far the better side during the opening hour of last night’s final but were undone by a set-piece in the 74th minute.

Maatsen then made a costly error just nine minutes later as his misplaced pass led to Vinicius Junior doubling Madrid’s lead.

Despite a forgettable end to the final for Maatsen, the Chelsea loanee impressed at left-back and earned positive reviews from the German media.

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German media react to Chelsea loanee Maatsen’s display vs Real Madrid

handed Maatsen a ‘Grade 3’ for his display at Wembley, with the outlet praising his overall performance despite the mistake.

“Was half left-back, half central midfielder,” they wrote. “Helped out again and again in front of the defence and set up Dortmund’s best chance with his pass to Niclas Füllkrug (23′).

“His shot from a good position shortly after the break was blocked. Strong defensive action against Dani Carvajal’s attempt after just under an hour. Before the 0:2 with the decisive blunder. Real punishes such mistakes immediately.”

praised the Chelsea loanee for his work rate down the left-hand side, claiming he kept Federico Valverde quiet in the first-half.

The outlet labelled Maatsen’s tactical awareness as ‘astonishing’ but also dubbed his mistake as ‘catastrophic’.

“Ran up and down the left side, Valverde didn’t get anything over his side in the first half,” Sportschau wrote. “Only his crosses could have been a little more precise.

“Tactically astonishing: Whenever BVB switched to a three-man defensive bar with Emre Can, Maatsen switched from the left to the centre. Before the 0-1, he stood with goalscorer Dani Carvajal and let him escape.

“He then caused the 0:2 completely himself with a catastrophic misplaced pass.”

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Maatsen’s Champions League final stats

Maatsen has enjoyed a brilliant second half of the campaign with Dortmund and could make his switch to the Bundesliga permanent this summer.

The 22-year-old endured a moment to forget in last night’s final as he gave the ball to Jude Bellingham shortly before Madrid’s second goal.

But on the whole, the reflect what was a solid performance from the Dutchman at left-back.

• 90 minutes played
• 3 clearances
• 1 blocked shot
• 2 interceptions
• 5 tackles
• 1 error leading to a goal
• 7/10 ground duels won
• 23/27 passes completed
• 1 key pass