The club's sporting director Joerg Schmadtke said the referee had not followed protocol and that they would demand a replay. Maximilian Philipp and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang each scored a brace, the latter in the space of two minutes, as Cologne returned to the harsh realities of the Bundesliga after their midweek European adventure in London. Borussia, meanwhile, went top with 10 points, ahead of Hanover 96 on goal difference.Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga so far this season:
Most goals scored (10) Fewest goals conceded (0) Solid start in the league. ? pic.twitter.com/XMJlBUy0tk— Squawka Football (@Squawka) September 17, 2017
An estimated 20,000 Cologne fans marched through London on Thursday to celebrate their team's first European match in 25 years as they visited Arsenal. Despite the festive atmosphere, many of them did not have tickets and the match, won 3-1 by Arsenal, was delayed for an hour by crowd problems. The Billy Goats barely had time to settle on Sunday before Philipp headed in Andriy Yarmolenko's cross after two minutes.Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored 35 Bundesliga goals since the start of last season; no other player has scored more.
Goal machine. ? pic.twitter.com/LnPACgRMzM— Squawka Football (@Squawka) September 17, 2017
Cologne pulled themselves together and held their own until the stroke of halftime when their goalkeeper Timo Horn dropped the ball at a corner and Dortmund defender Sokratis tapped it in. Referee Patrick Ittrich at first awarded Cologne a free kick but, after consulting with the VAR, changed his mind and gave the goal. However, Cologne said that the referee had blown his whistle before the ball entered the goal, meaning that he could not subsequently award it no matter what the video showed.Performance level ?
Borussia Dortmund have moved top of the Bundesliga - and in style! https://t.co/fYNe3bIC9s pic.twitter.com/v3w61OX6UJ— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) September 18, 2017
"We will naturally lodge a protest," said Schmadtke. "If a decision is made against the framework of rules, then a replay is necessary and that is what we will seek." "We need a protocol where it is clearly established when the (VAR) assistant can intervene and when he can't," he added. The German league did not immediately comment, nor did referee Ittrich.First VAR strikes twice, and then so does @Aubameyang7 ⚡️⚡️
And just like that it's 4-0 #BVBKOE pic.twitter.com/SKSxdM79h3— Bundesliga English (@Bundesliga_EN) September 17, 2017
The VAR was again decisive in the 59th minute when Cologne's Lukas Kluenter raised his arm to a Yarmolenko cross and the referee, after another consultation, awarded the penalty which Aubameyang converted. The Gabon forward struck again the following minute when he turned in another Yarmolenko cross and Philipp dinked the ball over Horn for the fifth goal in the 69th minute. Kevin Volland scored twice as Bayer Leverkusen beat Freiburg 4-0 to claim their first win of the season and leave the Black Forest side winless..@BVB blew @fckoeln_en away this evening ?
Here's how it happened ? https://t.co/pVxZklka5V pic.twitter.com/RvOL8yJ85c— Bundesliga English (@Bundesliga_EN) September 17, 2017
Hoffenheim, 2-0 winners over Bayern Munich the previous weekend, were held 1-1 at home by Hertha Berlin, leaving them with eight points.RESULTSHoffenheim 1 (Wagner 6) Hertha Berlin 1 (Esswein 55)Bayer Leverkusen 4 (Volland 21, 34, Aranguiz 29, Brandt 86) Freiburg 0Borussia Dortmund 5 (Philipp 3, 69, Sokratis 45+2, Aubameyang 59, 60) Cologne 0First win of the season in the bag ?@KeVolland and @bayer04_en cruised past @scfreiburg this afternoon ? https://t.co/oF7bLQVKSs pic.twitter.com/8una28WY7U
— Bundesliga English (@Bundesliga_EN) September 17, 2017
