Star Metro - Gittens' late double gives Dortmund Champions League win at Brugge

NYSE - LSE

CMSC	0.16%	21.31	$
CMSD	0.09%	21.18	$
JRI	-0.32%	12.4	$
GSK	-2.31%	50.27	$
BCE	-0.38%	23.4	$
BP	-0.38%	42.34	$
VOD	-0.38%	15.88	$
BCC	-1.49%	78.77	$
RELX	2.64%	36.3	$
RIO	0.08%	104.78	$
RYCEF	-0.48%	20.75	$
RBGPF	-0.62%	70.69	$
AZN	-1.06%	164.52	$
BTI	-2.06%	56.28	$
NGG	-1.38%	79.43	$

Gittens' late double gives Dortmund Champions League win at Brugge

SPORTS 18.09.2024

Gittens' late double gives Dortmund Champions League win at Brugge / Photo: NICOLAS TUCAT - AFP

English winger Jamie Gittens scored twice in the final 15 minutes to seal Borussia Dortmund a 3-0 win at Club Brugge in their Champions League opener on Wednesday.

Text size:

Last year's finalists, who lost to Real Madrid at Wembley in June, got off to a fast start in the new-look league stage.

New Dortmund coach Nuri Sahin brought Gittens on as a substitute with 22 minutes remaining and the game goalless.

The 20-year-old scored shortly after, his right-foot shot looping over the head of Club Brugge goalkeeper Simon Mignolet with the aid of a deflection.

Again coming off the left flank, Gittens blasted a low shot into the net to score his second with four minutes remaining, snuffing out Brugge's chance of a comeback.

Summer arrival Serhou Guirassy won and converted a penalty in injury time to add gloss to the final score.

Sahin, who at 36 is the youngest coach in this season's Champions League, made three changes from Friday's 4-2 Bundesliga win over Heidenheim, including benching Guirassy as he continues his return from injury.

The visitors dominated possession but Belgian champions Brugge had the best opportunities of the opening half.

With 12 minutes gone, Raphael Onyedika pounced on a loose ball in the Dortmund box and forced a good save from 'keeper Gregor Kobel.

Brugge midfielder Hugo Vetlesen latched onto the rebound but his strike could only shake the crossbar as Dortmund held on.

Brugge again went close with 30 minutes remaining, Kobel keeping a goalbound shot from Vetlesen out with his fingertips.

As he had done in Dortmund's Bundesliga opener against Eintracht Frankfurt, Gittens -- who replaced the ineffective Marcel Sabitzer -- came off the bench late and turned the game with two goals.

While the former Manchester City winger's first goal took a fortunate deflection, his second showcased his skill, as he dribbled down the left and cut in to fire home a low shot.

Guirassy, who joined Dortmund having scored 28 goals in 28 league games for Stuttgart last season, was brought down in the box and converted the penalty with the final kick of the game.

The clean sheet against Brugge means Dortmund became the first team in Champions League history to face a team five times without conceding a goal.

F.Tremblay--SMC

Featured

Australia's McKeown vows to reclaim backstroke world records

Five-time Olympic swimming champion Kaylee McKeown vowed Friday to reclaim her 50m and 100m backstroke world records while also setting her sights on staying in the pool until the 2032 Brisbane Games.

Boston Legacy FC Delays White Stadium Debut to 2028

Boston Legacy FC has confirmed that its long-awaited move to the renovated White Stadium in Franklin Park will take place in 2028, pushing back the original timeline by one year. The delay follows a recent state Supreme Judicial Court decision that resolved legal disputes surrounding the construction project, allowing work to proceed without further litigation.

In shadow of Premier League, Serie A flexes financial muscle

For Italian football this has been a chastening year, yet, ahead of a likely frenzy before their transfer window shuts on September 1, Serie A clubs have spent the summer asserting their place in Europe's financial pecking order.

Springboks 'old guard' seek revenge over All Blacks

Siya Kolisi will captain the most experienced South Africa team in history when they seek to level a series with arch rivals New Zealand in Cape Town on Saturday.