Borussia Dortmund maintained their perfect start to the Bundesliga season with a controlled 3-0 victory over newly promoted SC Paderborn at a sold-out Signal Iduna, extending their winning run in the league to three matches and keeping them level on points with early leaders Freiburg. The result, watched by 81,365 spectators, marked Dortmund’s best opening to a campaign since 2015 and left Paderborn still searching for their first goal of the season after three games.
Niko Kovač’s side, fresh from a midweek 3-2 Champions League success against Villarreal, took the lead inside five minutes through Fábio Silva. Serhou Guirassy, playing as part of a dual-striker partnership with the Portuguese forward for the first time this season, launched a long ball from deep in his own half. Paderborn defender Tjark Scheller misjudged the flight, allowing Silva a clear run on goal. The striker rounded goalkeeper Nahuel Noll and slotted home from close range for his first start of the league campaign. Dortmund dominated large periods of the first half, creating multiple clear openings, yet twice saw Guirassy have the ball in the net only for both efforts, a dinked finish and a header to be correctly ruled out for offside after video assistant referee intervention.
Paderborn, who had drawn 0-0 at Mainz and lost 1-0 at home to Freiburg in their opening fixtures, showed organisation and occasional threat on the counter but struggled to convert possession into meaningful chances. Laurin Curda went closest for the visitors when he fired into the side-netting. Dortmund’s pressure continued after the interval, with Ethan Nwaneri, Jobe Bellingham and Guirassy all denied by Noll as the home side sought a decisive second goal. Nico Schlotterbeck, making his return after nearly three months out through injury sustained at the World Cup, provided defensive solidity alongside Waldemar Anton in a back three that limited the visitors to zero shots on target across the full 90 minutes.
The breakthrough that settled the contest arrived in the 80th minute. Substitute Felix Nmecha, introduced alongside Marcel Sabitzer and Carney Chukwuemeka as Kovač refreshed his midfield and attack, exchanged passes with fellow replacement Maximilian Beier before driving a low finish past Noll from 12 yards. Nine minutes later Nmecha produced the moment of the match, meeting Sabitzer’s delivery with a spectacular overhead kick that flew into the net. The Germany international, who had been on the pitch for only 25 minutes, finished with a personal rating of 9.6 according to one statistical provider and left the field to warm applause. Dortmund finished with 55 per cent possession, 14 shots to Paderborn’s 10, and an expected goals tally of 1.55 against 0.42.
The result left Dortmund on nine points from three matches, second only to Freiburg on goal difference after the Black Forest club’s 5-0 demolition of Borussia Mönchengladbach. Bayern Munich, who have played only two league games, sit further back. For Paderborn the afternoon underlined the scale of the challenge facing Ralf Kettemann’s side in their return to the top flight. They remain on one point and have yet to score, though their coach later sought perspective. “My main task now is to separate the result from the performance and to assess the whole thing soberly,” Kettemann told Sportschau, describing the early concession as the “worst case” given that almost the entire squad were experiencing the Signal Iduna Park atmosphere for the first time, while praising the subsequent response.
Nmecha himself reflected on the bicycle-kick finish that sealed the points. “That was a beautiful moment. I have to watch it again and enjoy it,” he said afterwards. Sporting director Lars Ricken, meanwhile, provided positive news on the absentees, confirming that Konstantinos Karetsas, who had collapsed with circulatory issues during the Villarreal match and spent time in hospital, had undergone thorough examination. “We’ve put him through every possible check over the last three days and there are actually no abnormalities,” Ricken explained. “He will return to training in the course of next week and then we’ll have to see whether he might be able to play against Stuttgart, but we don’t fear any long-term damage.”
Dortmund’s next assignment is an away trip to VfB Stuttgart on Saturday evening, while Paderborn host Hoffenheim on Sunday. The home side’s early-season form, built on clinical finishing when it mattered and a deepening understanding between Guirassy and Silva, offers encouraging signs for Kovač as the fixture list intensifies. Paderborn, still adapting to the physical and technical demands of the Bundesliga, must find a way to convert their competitive spirit into goals if they are to climb away from the lower reaches of the table.
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