Chelsea loanee Carney Chukwuemeka may remember his first start in the Champions League for all the wrong reasons, as he was part of a Borussia Dortmund side that were thrashed by Barcelona in midweek.
On Wednesday night, Barcelona recorded a majorly impressive 4-0 victory at home to Dortmund in the first leg of a Champions League quarter-final tie.
Carney Chukwuemeka, 21, left Chelsea in the winter transfer window to join Dortmund on loan for the rest of the season. Even though Chukwuemeka started slowly in Germany due to injury, he’s now building momentum and breaking into Niko Kovac’s side.
The Englishman scored his first Bundesliga goal last weekend, which earned him a start in the Champions League away to Barcelona.
German media react to Carney Chukwuemeka’s Borussia Dortmund performance vs Barcelona
Despite the fact that Barcelona dismantled Dortmund in Wednesday’s European tie, the German media were actually pretty positive about on-loan midfielder Chukwuemeka following his performance.
He started in central midfield and was taken off midway through the second half as he continues to build up his minutes.
Here is a look at comments from German publications about Chukwuemeka’s display versus Barcelona…
Sport1 wrote: “Whenever BVB threatened offensively, he was involved. He repeatedly dribbled forward and set up two great opportunities for Guirassy to take the lead. He also showed great defensive skills. Despite the defeat, it was his next promising start after his debut in Freiburg. However, he’s not yet good enough for more than 70 minutes.”
Spox posted: “The winter signing started a Champions League match for the first time in his career. His influence on the ball suffered somewhat due to the fact that, unlike against Freiburg, he wasn’t the sole number 10, but instead played alongside Brandt in the centre. His first notable effort was the shot just before halftime (41′). And that’s how it stayed. Rating: 4.5.”
Ran claimed: “He had a very good spell in the first half, creating threat near the Barca goal several times. He also set up two shots for BVB in the first 45 minutes. When Dortmund managed to score going forward, it usually went through him. He was weaker in the second half. Kovac substituted him after just over an hour. Ran – Grade: 4”
| Minutes played | Total shots | Chances created | Accurate passes | Tackles won | Interceptions | Ground duels won | Match rating |
| 68 | 1 | 2 | 23/27 (85%) | 1/2 (50%) | 3 | 2/4 (50%) | 6.9 |
Dortmund will be out of this season’s Champions League unless there’s some sort of miracle in the second leg, but Chukwuemeka will take a lot from the experience on the biggest stage.
Chukwuemeka is proving Chelsea wrong because he’s quickly looking like an important player in Dortmund colours. In contrast, he only played five games in the first half of the 2024/25 season for the Blues.
What’s happening with Carney Chukwuemeka next season?
As it stands, Chukwuemeka is due to return to Chelsea in the summer once his short-term loan deal expires. Incidentally, his current Blues deal doesn’t run out until 2028.
It’s been reported that Dortmund would like to re-sign Chukwuemeka next season on another loan deal, although this would rely on them qualifying for Europe. They’re currently sitting eighth in the Bundesliga league table as they try to secure European qualification.
If it’s possible, the box-to-box midfielder would benefit massively from another spell in German football, where he’s likely to play a lot more minutes than at Stamford Bridge.
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