Soccer Football - Bundesliga - Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt - Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund, Germany - August 24, 2024 Borussia Dortmund's Jamie Bynoe-Gittens celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Leon Kuegeler
DORTMUND (Reuters) -A second-half brace from substitute Jamie Gittens earned Borussia Dortmund a 2-0 home win over Eintracht Frankfurt in their first Bundesliga game of the season on Saturday.
Dortmund, who finished fifth last season, broke the deadlock in the 72nd minute after struggling to find their rhythm against a feisty Frankfurt who contained their opponents with high pressing.
"It was a hot day and it was a good opponent. Things weren't running smoothly for us yet," Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel told reporters.
"We lost a few balls, even though we had a lot of possession overall. It wasn't a top performance yet, but it was a good first performance. There were a lot of good things we can build on, but also some things we need to work on."
England under-21 international Gittens scored with a superb strike from a tight angle that sailed into the top far corner after cutting inside the box from the right.
Frankfurt came close to a late equaliser but saw their hopes of salvaging a point dashed as Gittens scored his second after a quick counter-attack in stoppage time to earn coach Nuri Sahin his first three points at the helm.
Dortmund also made it 10 seasons in a row with a win in their opening league game, the longest active run.
"It was a great game for me. I scored two goals. I'm happy that it all worked out," Gittens, who already has more goals this season than his only strike last term, told Sky.
"It's a crazy feeling to score two goals in front of the best fans in the world. I'm very happy. We're trying to play with more possession this season."
Dortmund play at Werder Bremen next Saturday, while Frankfurt will look to bounce back when they host Hoffenheim.
(Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico City, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
