Dortmund Silences Schalke with Help from Empty Stadium

The first of Europe's major football leagues is back in action, which will probably put a dent in the Belarussian League's ratings.

But probably not their action. Option-starved punters will surely keep them close in their hearts.

However, the Bundesliga is here again, resuming play in a country that actually knows what it's doing in regards to minding the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

Putting it mildly, the scene was weird inside Signal Iduna Park, but in a way, it was a perfect site to host that backyard brawl between BVB Dortmund and FC Schalke 04 known as the Revierderby.

Mainly because it looked like a back yard with no fans in the stands.

Being real, it didn't look like much of a derby, either, as BVB ran rampant over die Königsblauen -- Royal Blues -- to the tune of a 4-0 whitewash.

The Killer Bees were everywhere ...

 

And nowhere.

The last time der BVB played a home match, 81,365 of their faithful filled the stands. Tonight, only the spread-out substitutes, trainers, and coaches were there, socially distanced and all too aware of every sound from every part of the stadium as they had never been before.

Closed stadiums are nothing new in Europe, thanks to the stupidity of racism and the moronic fans who chanted its toxicity. Neither Dortmund nor Schalke had ever experienced such an environment, though, and it showed for the first few minutes.

 

Eventually, though, gifted Norwegian forward Erling Håland made the mental adjustments and positioned himself to score the Budesliga's first goal since March in the 29th minute.

It set the tone for the rest of the half, with the 19-year-old prodigy adding a helper for Raphaël Guerreiro's 45-minute blast to make the second half all but academic.

Still, Guerreiro drilled a second and Thorgan Hazard added on on the hour to complete the blowout:

 

Football's return reminds us yet again to wonder what a match would be without an English broadcaster -- with full access to players and media guides -- mangling a foreign name.

Because he's destined for greatness, it might be useful to know that the Scandinavian å is often written as aa and is pronounced kinda like oh. Thus, its air-ling hoh-lund.

Now you can impress your friends and neighbors.

 

So, too, is German football, for the sole reason that it's returned.

There's a race to settle, and Dortmund's victory puts pressure on FC Bayern to take care of business next. Die Roten now only have a one-point lead on their annual pursuers.

For now.