Borussia Dortmund coach eyes improvement despite rout of Augsburg
Borussia Dortmund coach Lucien Favre said his team could get even better after they made a perfect start to the new Bundesliga season on Saturday, thrashing Augsburg 5-1 to take an early lead in the title race.
England international Jadon Sancho, who claimed his first goal of the season in Dortmund's German Super Cup victory over Bayern Munich two weeks ago, was among the scorers again as Dortmund ran riot to go top of the table.
"We did well and had a lot of possession today, and we deserved to win," said Favre, but said his side could still improve in some areas.
"The important thing is that we get better every day."
Dortmund, who threw away a nine-point lead and narrowly missed out on the title last season, had promised another attack on Bayern's hegemony in 2019/20.
Dortmund received a boost on Friday when the champions dropped two points in their 2-2 draw with Hertha Berlin in the season opener. They then romped to victory in front of their own fans on Saturday.
Florian Niederlechner's first-minute opener for Augsburg left Dortmund stunned, but it took the hosts just two minutes to draw level. Paco Alcacer gratefully pounced on a mistake from Augsburg goalkeeper Tomas Koubek.
Koubek was at fault again when Sancho put Dortmund ahead after the break, flapping at a low cross before the Englishman smashed the ball in at the far post.
The Czech shotstopper then crowned a miserable Bundesliga debut by dropping the ball at the feet of Marco Reus to gift Dortmund a third goal on 57 minutes.
A curling long-range strike from Alcacer two minutes later and a debut goal for new signing Julian Brandt completed the rout for Dortmund.
Elsewhere, former Huddersfield Town manager David Wagner made a gritty start to his new job at Schalke 04, as his side were held to a 0-0 draw by Borussia Moenchengladbach.
"I've had worse days in my career," Wagner told broadcaster Sky.
"The boys gave everything in defence. We still need time on the training pitch but, today, it was about showing commitment and passion." - AFP
OTHER RESULTS
Eintracht Frankfurt 1 Hoffenheim 0, Bayer Leverkusen 3 Paderborn 2, Freiburg 3 Mainz 0, Werder Bremen 1 Fortuna Duesseldorf 3, Wolfsburg 2 Cologne 1
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