Irrepressible Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland (1st.r) put the game beyond Club Brugge with a first-half brace. - © getty images
Irrepressible Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland (1st.r) put the game beyond Club Brugge with a first-half brace. - © getty images
bundesliga

Erling Haaland double helps Borussia Dortmund to polished win over Club Brugge

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Erling Haaland scored twice as Borussia Dortmund moved top of UEFA Champions League Group F with a comfortable 3-0 win away to Club Brugge.

Club Brugge 0-3 Borussia Dortmund
Goals: 0-1 Hazard (14'), 0-2 Haaland (18'), 0-3 Haaland (32')

Haaland was back in the side following a minor knee complaint, and didn’t take long to make his presence felt. After Thorgan Hazard broke the deadlock following a poor clearance from Brugge goalkeeper Simon Mignolet, Dortmund’s prolific No.9 brought up his third Champions League goal in as many games. Axel Witsel flicked on a corner and, after seeing his initial effort saved, Haaland buried the rebound. Roman Bürki denied Krepin Diatta a rare sight of the BVB goal, before Haaland doubled his tally. Mahmoud Dahoud started the move with a peach of a cross-field pass for Thomas Meunier, who selflessly opted to pass rather than shoot when through on goal, presenting Haaland with the easiest of tasks from close range.

Dortmund somewhat inevitably had some hairy moments to contend with after the restart as Brugge chased the game. Emanuel Bonaventure tested Bürki and Eduard Sobol blazed wide with the hosts’ clearest-cut opportunity, while Ruud Vormer got his angles wrong from an attempted lob. A Haaland shot across the boughs restored a sense of order, before Meunier had a goal-bound strike charged down. Hazard was at the heart of that move, and almost finished off Dortmund’s next foray. Haaland barrelled towards goal and supplied the cross for the Belgian, who was just a fraction away from applying the finishing touch. BVB saw out the remainder with minimum fuss, and go into Saturday's Klassiker against Bayern Munich on a four-match winning run.

Match stats

  • Dortmund lead Group F with six points at the halfway stage, followed by Lazio (five), Brugge (four) and Zenit (one).
  • Haaland has scored in eight of his nine group stage appearances, hitting 14 Champions League goals in 11 outings all told.
  • Hazard - a Belgium international - scored his second competitive goal of the season.
  • Seventeen-year-old American Gio Reyna made his fifth Champions League appearance.
  • BVB have won their last four games in Belgium and kept a clean sheet in each of those victories. Indeed, no Belgian club has ever beaten German opposition in the Champions League, in 21 attempts.
  • Meunier was part of the Brugge side that won the league title in 2015/16. He was at the club between 2011 and 2016, scoring 19 goals in 198 appearances in all competitions.

Line-ups

Brugge: Mignolet - Mata, Koussounou, Deli, Sobol - Vormer (c) (Balanta 71'), Rits, Vanaken (Schrijvers 84') - Diatta, Bonaventure (Krmencik 84'), Lang (De Ketelaere 76')
Unused subs: Horvarth, Okereke, Badji, Van Der Brempt, Mechele
Out: Mitrovic (heel), Ricca (match fitness)
Coach:
Philippe Clement 

Dortmund: Bürki - Meunier (Morey 84'), Akanji, Witsel (c), Guerreiro - Dahoud, Delaney (Bellingham 72') - Brandt (Reus 72'), Reyna (Passlack 77'), Hazard - Haaland (Reinier 84')
Unused subs: Unbehaun, Drljaca, Sancho, Schulz, Piszczek, Knauff, Raschl
Out:
Can (not included), Hummels (thigh), Schmelzer (knee), Zagadou (knee)
Coach:
Lucien Favre

As it happened

Brugge 0-3 Dortmund
Goals: 0-1 Hazard (14'), 0-2 Haaland (18'), 0-3 Haaland (32')

Brugge: Mignolet - Mata, Koussounou, Deli, Sobol - Vormer (c) (Balanta 71'), Rits, Vanaken (Schrijvers 84') - Diatta, Bonaventure (Krmencik 84'), Lang (De Ketelaere 76')
Dortmund: Bürki - Meunier (Morey 84'), Akanji, Delaney (Bellingham 72'), Guerreiro - Dahoud, Witsel (c) - Brandt (Reus 72'), Reyna (Passlack 77'), Hazard - Haaland (Reinier 84')

FULL-TIME! BRUGGE 0-3 DORTMUND

Assured stuff from Dortmund, who go top of Group F on six points at the midway stage. Bayern are up next in the Bundesliga - you don't want to miss that one!

86' BOLD

Schrijvers tries to catch out Bürki with a free-kick, but it misses the target. The full-time whistle can't come soon enough for the Belgian champions...

84' EATING AWAY AT THE CLOCK

Utterly professional display from Dortmund. They’re home and hosed, and not taking any risks ahead of Saturday’s Bayern clash. Haaland is replaced by Reinier, while ever-present Meunier makes way for Morey. Krmencik and Schrijvers join the action for Brugge.

77' REYNA OFF

Another lively shift at the office from Reyna. It's fair to assume he'll start against Bayern on Saturday. Passlack is on in his stead.

76' HAZARD!

Haaland puts his head down and bulldozes towards the Brugge goal. He whips in a telling cross form the left, but there's just too much on it for Hazard. So close to a fourth.

76' BRUGGE CHANGE

With time fast running out, Philippe Clement throws on striker De Ketelaere for attacking midfielder Lang.

72' FRESH LEGS

Balanta's on in place of Vormer for Brugge, while Favre plumps for Reus and Bellingham. Brandt - who's been quiet by his standards - and Delaney make way.

61' BRUGGE NOT DOWN YET

Dortmund are undone at the back - we haven't said that often tonight - as Land feeds Sobol in the box. It's a glorious opening, but he can't keep his shot down.

59' DORTMUND STAND FIRM

There's a flurry of activity in and around the Dortmund are as Bonaventure tests Bürki. Kossounou takes aim after meeting the ensuing corner, but Reyna gets in the way to block his goal-bound header.

48' LONG REYNA

Reyna chances his arm from range, but it doesn't trouble the goalkeeper. It's a sign of his confidence levels, though. The 17-year-old has been in flying form this season, and has recently earned a USMNT call-up for his efforts.

SECOND HALF! BRUGGE 0-3 DORTMUND

Buckle up, folks. This could get very ugly for Brugge, if Haaland has anything to do about it...

HALF-TIME! BRUGGE 0-3 DORTMUND

Gladbach won 6-0 in Donetsk yesterday, and Dortmund are on course to notch up a similar scoreline at the Jan Breydelstadion. Hazard struck first, before Haaland notched his 25th and 26th goals for BVB on just his 28th competitive appearance for the club.

44' DORTMUND'S NO.1

A fairly routing effort as Diatta finds the Bürki's mitts from 18 yards. The Switzerland international's position in the Dortmund side has been under threat of late, but he's putting in a solid shift tonight.

36' WARNING SHOT

Dortmund let Brugge come at them as Sobol wellies an effort wide from range. A hint of desperation already from Brugge, not that BVB should take anything for granted...

32' GOAAAL!!!! BRUGGE 0-3 DORTMUND

Haaland doesn't make the same mistake again! Dahoud starts the move with a superb cross-field pass for Meunier. The Belgium international zips past Diatta and selflessly squares for Haaland to touch the ball home. Stunning attacking play from the 1996/97 winners.

30' ALMOST THREE

BFFs Reyna and Haaland combine to devastating effect. The American's through-ball is weighted to perfection - you'd put your mortgage on the Dortmund No.9 scoring, but places the ball too close to Mignolet. Let-off for the home side, who are in danger of falling in apart.

28' HAZARD-OUS

Hazard is causing Brugge all manner of problems. The Belgium international cuts in and shoots goalwards, making Mignolet work yet again. He'll be starting against Bayern, at this rate.

23' BÜRKI!

Roman Bürki springs to life to beat away an effort from Vormer, after Dortmund had been caught cold by some neat interplay involving Vanaken and Bonaventure.

18' GOAAAL!!!! BRUGGE 0-2 DORTMUND

It's Erling time! Mignolet atones somewhat for his part in that goal by denying Hazard a second. His intervention is at the expense of a corner that's pinged in by Reyna and flicked on by Witsel. Haaland reacts fastest and draws the save from Mignolet, before dispatching the rebound with aplomb. Three in as many Champions League games this term, and 13 in 11 all told. The man is a beast!

14' GOAAAL!!!! BRUGGE 0-1 DORTMUND

Thorgan Hazard strikes first on home soil. Delaney drives up the left and asks the question with a lofted ball into the danger zone. Mignolet can only punch it back into a sea of traffic. Meunier swipes, Hazard connects and steers into the empty net. Great time to score - just when the hosts were building some momentum.

6' HAZARD COVERS

Brugge fighting fire with fire as Lang swings a boot in the box. He makes the desired contact with the ball, but Hazard is in the right place at the right time to block.

4' A HIVE OF ACTIVITY

Early promise as Dahoud and Brandt combine for the game's first corner. It doesn't come to anything, but there's a lot of movement in behind Haaland even at this embryonic stage in the contest. It's going to be very difficult for the Brugge rearguard to keep their shape...

KICK-OFF!

Here we go...

TOP SPOT UP FOR GRABS

Lazio hit back to draw with Zenit in Group F's other encounter to go top on four points, a tally they share with Brugge. Dortmund are on three points, but will climb to first place with a win.

ALL HAIL HAALAND

Haaland's return from a minor knee complaint is a welcome one. The 20-year-old Norwegian has scored five goals in as many Bundesliga appearances in 2020/21, as well as two in two in the Champions League. Despite bowing out in the round of 16 last term, he was the competition's second highest scorer with 10 goals - only five less than top-scoring tournament winner Robert Lewandowski. Twelve goals across his first 10 Champions League games is a record.

FORM

Dortmund climbed to second in the Bundesliga - behind leaders Bayern on goal difference - thanks to Hummels' match-winning brace in Bielefeld. They've won five of six in the league, and boast the stingiest defence in the division with just two conceded. Defending champions Brugge are fourth in the current Belgian Pro League standings, following their 2-2 draw from a winning position with Mechelen. They have four points in Group F, having edged Zenit 2-1 and held Lazio.

AS IT STANDS

Zenit lead Lazio in the earlier kick-off, which is good news for Dortmund. With three points on the board following their loss to the Italians and win over the Russian champions, victory in Belgium will take them top of Group F at the halfway stage.

BRUGGE TEAM NEWS

It's pretty much as expected from the hosts, with the exception of attacking midfielder Charles De Ketelaere, who starts on the bench.

DORTMUND TEAMS NEWS

Dortmund head coach Lucien Favre shuffles his pack, with one eye on Bayern. Thomas Delaney drops into the centre of defence in place of Mats Hummels, who picked up a knock whilst scoring both goals in Saturday's win over Bielefeld. Mahmoud Dahoud and Axel Witsel start in defensive midfield, while Gio Reyna is recalled further forward to supply returning top scorer Erling Haaland. Jude Bellingham, Marco Reus and Jadon Sancho drop to the bench.

WELCOME!

It's impossible to ignore the upcoming Klassiker between Dortmund and Bayern, but the Black-Yellows have Champions League business to attend to first. Join us for all the match build-up and coverage from their Group F encounter away to Belgium's Brugge...