There was a handsome return "home" for Shinji Kagawa at Dortmund and a workmanlike victory for dominant Bayern Munich as two of the top Bundesliga clubs prepped for Champions League action Saturday by collecting full points from their Bundesliga work.
Bayern's 2-0 triumph over struggling VfB Stuttgart allowed them to pull level on seven points with Bayer 04 Leverkusen atop the Bundesliga. Dortmund, six points, moved into third place after their 3-1 triumph over SC Freiburg.
Kagawa scored once and set up the other for Adrian Ramos in the first half as he slotted right back into the Dortmund lineup where he was such an influential player before leaving for Manchester United. Unable to truly settle at United, the Japanese star came back to Germany as the summer transfer window closed and he wasted no time announcing his return.
With BvB missing Marco Reus for at least a month due to an ankle injury suffered while playing in Germany's 2-1 Euro 2016 qualifying win over Scotland, Kagawa's return was timely for sure.
The opening goal came in the 34th minute after Kagawa got possession on the left side, spun away from defenders, then found Kevin Grosskreutz sprinting into space down the left. Grosskreutz' cross found Adrian Ramos at the near post and the striker flicked it home. Seven minutes later Ramos turned provider after Grosskreutz sprung him down the right; with Henrykh Mkhitaryan playing a dummy role at the top of the box, Ramos' cross came all the way through to Kagawa in space on the left. He made no mistake with a straight-forward finish.
A pair of substitute forwards combined to get Dortmund's third in the 78th minute, Ciro Immobile releasing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on the halfway line with a quick pass forward. Aubameyang ran half the length of the pitch, then finished neatly to the right corner. Oliver Sorg scored in the dying minutes for the visitors.
BUNDESLIGA RESULTS
• Bayer Leverkusen 1, Werder Bremen 1
• Bayern Munich 2, Stuttgart 0
• Borussia Dortmund 3, Freiburg 1
• Hoffenheim 1, Wolfsburg 1
• Hertha Berlin 1, Mainz 3
• Paderborn 0, Cologne 0
• Borussia M'Gladbach vs. Schalke 04
Dortmund open Champions League play Tuesday when they host Arsenal.
In Munich, Bayern had both Franck Ribery and Mehdi Benatia available, but Josep Guardiola kept both on the bench at the start. With an imposing amount of possession the defending champions probed endlessly before a set piece produced the opening goal in the 27th minute.
Xabi Alonso took a free kick wide of the left, dropping the ball into the danger area six yards out where Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Mueller were both there to pressure Antonio Rudiger's attempted clearing header. The ball fell to Mario Goetze, open on the right side. He turned sharply past a defender, then shot to the far corner of the VfB goal.
Ribery came on for Goetze in the 68th minute and Bayern continued to dominate the match as he added his personal touch of speed and movement. Alonso and Lewandowski both hit the woodwork on the same attack sequence in the 72nd minute, but the second goal didn't arrive until the final five minutes when Lewandowski found Ribery in space for a neat, quality finish.
Bayern will now get ready for the visit of Manchester City on Wednesday as their Champions League campaign begins.
Elsewhere, Sami Allagui, another player going back to his former club in the transfer window, scored the second for FSV Mainz in a 3-1 away at Hertha Berlin. Allagui had been at Hertha, but became surplus to requirements when the Berliners picked up Salomon Kalou from Lille. Kalou did not start Saturday, but played 21 minutes off the bench. Shinji Okazaki had given Mainz a 1-0 halftime lead and also added a late tally. Ronny's penalty was Hertha's only response.
LEND US YOUR EARS!
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The two newly-promoted teams played a 0-0 draw at Paderborn so both Koln and the hosts remain unbeaten after three matches with five points.
Anthony Modeste goal gave Hoffenheim a 1-0 lead but Daniel Calgiuri's cross found Ivica Olic to neatly deflect home a 90th minute equalizer as Wolfsburg shared the points in a 1-1 draw
Borussia Moenchengladbach faced Schalke in the Saturday night match. Schalke has a Champions League date in London vs. Chelsea on Wednesday.
There was a handsome return "home" for Shinji Kagawa at Dortmund and a workmanlike victory for dominant Bayern Munich as two of the top Bundesliga clubs prepped for Champions League action Saturday by collecting full points from their Bundesliga work.
Bayern's 2-0 triumph over struggling VfB Stuttgart allowed them to pull level on seven points with Bayer 04 Leverkusen atop the Bundesliga. Dortmund, six points, moved into third place after their 3-1 triumph over SC Freiburg.
Kagawa scored once and set up the other for Adrian Ramos in the first half as he slotted right back into the Dortmund lineup where he was such an influential player before leaving for Manchester United. Unable to truly settle at United, the Japanese star came back to Germany as the summer transfer window closed and he wasted no time announcing his return.
With BvB missing Marco Reus for at least a month due to an ankle injury suffered while playing in Germany's 2-1 Euro 2016 qualifying win over Scotland, Kagawa's return was timely for sure.
The opening goal came in the 34th minute after Kagawa got possession on the left side, spun away from defenders, then found Kevin Grosskreutz sprinting into space down the left. Grosskreutz' cross found Adrian Ramos at the near post and the striker flicked it home. Seven minutes later Ramos turned provider after Grosskreutz sprung him down the right; with Henrykh Mkhitaryan playing a dummy role at the top of the box, Ramos' cross came all the way through to Kagawa in space on the left. He made no mistake with a straight-forward finish.
A pair of substitute forwards combined to get Dortmund's third in the 78th minute, Ciro Immobile releasing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on the halfway line with a quick pass forward. Aubameyang ran half the length of the pitch, then finished neatly to the right corner. Oliver Sorg scored in the dying minutes for the visitors.
BUNDESLIGA RESULTS
• Bayer Leverkusen 1, Werder Bremen 1
• Bayern Munich 2, Stuttgart 0
• Borussia Dortmund 3, Freiburg 1
• Hoffenheim 1, Wolfsburg 1
• Hertha Berlin 1, Mainz 3
• Paderborn 0, Cologne 0
• Borussia M'Gladbach vs. Schalke 04
Dortmund open Champions League play Tuesday when they host Arsenal.
In Munich, Bayern had both Franck Ribery and Mehdi Benatia available, but Josep Guardiola kept both on the bench at the start. With an imposing amount of possession the defending champions probed endlessly before a set piece produced the opening goal in the 27th minute.
Xabi Alonso took a free kick wide of the left, dropping the ball into the danger area six yards out where Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Mueller were both there to pressure Antonio Rudiger's attempted clearing header. The ball fell to Mario Goetze, open on the right side. He turned sharply past a defender, then shot to the far corner of the VfB goal.
Ribery came on for Goetze in the 68th minute and Bayern continued to dominate the match as he added his personal touch of speed and movement. Alonso and Lewandowski both hit the woodwork on the same attack sequence in the 72nd minute, but the second goal didn't arrive until the final five minutes when Lewandowski found Ribery in space for a neat, quality finish.
Bayern will now get ready for the visit of Manchester City on Wednesday as their Champions League campaign begins.
Elsewhere, Sami Allagui, another player going back to his former club in the transfer window, scored the second for FSV Mainz in a 3-1 away at Hertha Berlin. Allagui had been at Hertha, but became surplus to requirements when the Berliners picked up Salomon Kalou from Lille. Kalou did not start Saturday, but played 21 minutes off the bench. Shinji Okazaki had given Mainz a 1-0 halftime lead and also added a late tally. Ronny's penalty was Hertha's only response.
LEND US YOUR EARS!
Catch the FOX Soccer Podcast weekly on iTunes and SoundCloud.
The two newly-promoted teams played a 0-0 draw at Paderborn so both Koln and the hosts remain unbeaten after three matches with five points.
Anthony Modeste goal gave Hoffenheim a 1-0 lead but Daniel Calgiuri's cross found Ivica Olic to neatly deflect home a 90th minute equalizer as Wolfsburg shared the points in a 1-1 draw
Borussia Moenchengladbach faced Schalke in the Saturday night match. Schalke has a Champions League date in London vs. Chelsea on Wednesday.
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