Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang grabbed a hat-trick as Borussia Dortmund crushed Benfica 4-0 on Wednesday to advance to the Champions League quarter-finals. The Gabon international, who endured a dreadful evening in the first leg defeat, missing a number of chances and having a penalty saved, was back to his lethal best. It was the third successive match in which Aubameyang has scored at least twice as Benfica conceded their first goals from open play in more than 700 minutes and saw a seven-game winning run brought to an end. Benfica needed time to recover and free themselves from the hosts’ constant pressing game and made their first serious foray into the German half after half an hour, with Luisão’s header saved by the goalkeeper Roman Bürki. Aubameyang struck his second of the evening three minutes later before completing a hat-trick from close range in the 85th minute to kill off the tie.

Source: The Guardian March 08, 2017 22:41 UTC