Dortmund pump in 4 into Galatasaray's net in UEFA Champions League

Borussia Dortmund players celebrate their progress into the knockout stages

Berlin, Nov 5: Borussia Dortmund thrashed Galatasaray 4-1 to ensure their way into the pre-quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League at the Signal Iduna Park in Dortmund.

Dortmund shrugged off their dismal domestic form of five straight defeats as they controlled the proceedings from the start and with goals by Marco Reus, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Ciro Immobile and an own goal by Semih Kaya, registered fourth successive victories in the Champions League Tuesday, reports Xinhua.

Incidentally, the one goal they conceded was their first this season in European competitions.

Reus wasted a couple of chances early by firing wide and later in the 25th minutes set up Sokratis for a header that hit the crossbar to frustrate the home team. However, Reus was rewarded with a goal 14 minutes later. He received a through ball from Lukasz Piszczek just outside the box and managed to beat Galatasaray goalkeeper Fernando Muslera with a nutmeg.

Sokratis doubled the advantage in the 56th minute. Galatasaray failed to clear the ball following a corner and Sokratis poked home from a very close range.

Galatasaray pulled one back with a goal in the 70th minute when Hakan Balat headed home a Wesley Sneijder corner.

But Dortmund continued their clinical performance and responded just four minutes later through substitute Ciro Immobile, who completed a counterattack just three minutes after his being fielded.

Things went from bad to worse for the visitors as Semih Kaya scored an own goal in the 84th minute to round off Dortmund 4-1 victory on home soil.

With this win, Dortmund maintained their perfect record in group D. Juergen Klopp's men sit atop the standings with 12 points, followed by Arsenal with seven points, Anderlecht with two points and Galatasaray with one point.