Moukoko makes history as Dortmund wins derby
Youssoufa Moukoko became the youngest goalscorer in Revierderby history as the 17-year-old nodded in the only goal as Borussia Dortmund beat Schalke 1-0 on Sunday (AEST).
The win was Dortmund's fifth of the season, and all the more important as Bayern Munich lost to Augsburg, leaving Edin Terzic's team the outright leader of the Bundesliga.
This was the first Revierderby since October 2020, and the first with a crowd at Signal Iduna Park since April 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic leaving the stadium empty for the 2020 fixtures, and those inside Dortmund's home ground for this occasion couldn't have been happier.
Schalke started without a single player holding any Revierderby experience, and Dortmund looked to teach them a tough lesson early on. Marius Wolf and Donyell Malen were a constant nuisance throughout the first half and each fired warning shots in the opening exchanges.
Alexander Schwolow produced an outstanding save to deny Jude Bellingham what looked to be a certain goal, somehow clawing the 19-year-old's header off the line, before Anthony Modeste nodded wide from a corner.
Schalke failed to have a single attempt at goal in a one-sided first 45 minutes, but Dortmund went into the break somewhat subdued after captain Marco Reus was stretchered off with what looked to be a serious ankle injury that may rule him out of the FIFA World Cup in November.
Malen continued to make mischief in the second half and almost put Dortmund in front when he jinked past Henning Matriciani on the left and fired at goal, but Schwolow once again made a good save.
Gio Reyna and Bellingham also had efforts blocked as Dortmund piled forward with waves of almost constant pressure, but they could not apply the finishing touch to any of their chances.
Schalke began to grow in confidence as a result, even if it wasn't until the 62nd minute that it had its first shot of the game, with Kenan Karaman's low drive blocked by Nico Schlotterbeck.
Terzic introduced Moukoko and Karim Adeyemi in a bid to break the deadlock, and the youngsters' pace immediately caused the visitors problems, forcing the Schalke defence onto the back foot.
The change proved to be an inspired one when Moukoko grabbed the headlines, meeting Wolf's pinpoint cross from the left to power a header past Schwolow and seal his place in Dortmund folklore and the Revierderby's as its youngest goalscorer and, as it should turn out, matchwinner, aged 17 years and 301 days.
