Blessin in disguise? Gladbach must scale mountain after derby defeat by Köln

Alexander Blessin suffered defeat in his first match as Borussia Mönchengladbach manager after Saïd El Mala scored the winner for arch-rivals Köln. Gladbach entered the derby missing key players including Franck Honorat, Tim Kleindienst, and Ko Itakura through injury. The writer Andy Brassell argues that the loss highlights the massive task facing Blessin to revive an under-resourced and injury-hit squad following a difficult start to their Bundesliga campaign.

Köln secured the derby victory despite missing several forwards and seeing midfielder Ellyes Skhiri stretchered off in the first half. Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, Freiburg extended their league lead by beating Schalke 1-0, while Borussia Dortmund dropped points in a 2-2 draw with Werder Bremen. Bayern Munich drew against Augsburg after Manuel Neuer conceded an 8.4-second goal, and RB Leipzig crushed Eintracht Frankfurt 6-0 behind a Christopher Nkunku hat-trick.