Lewandowski continues his goal hunt against Dortmund

BERLIN, Aug. 18: Borussia Dortmund remains Robert Lewandowski's favorite opponent as the 32-year-old, in the shirt of Bayern Munich, scored his 23th and 24th goals in his 24th game against the side he played for until 2014.

The Pole's leading goal in the 41st minute opened the doors for the Bavarians to win the 2021 German Supercup after Thomas Mueller added the second only eight minutes later. Marco Reus shortened the gap with his 64th-minute goal in a nail-biting duel.

As Dortmund's hopes grew to grab the equalizer it was again Lewandowski who created facts by scoring in the 71st minute.

The Bundesliga's record-breaking top-scorer last season (41 goals) only secured the first title of the season for Bayern's new coach Julian Nagelsmann but delivered an artistic assist for team-mate Mueller tipping the ball with his heel in the direction of the German international.

The 2021 competition between the reigning league Champion Bayern and Cup winner Dortmund turned into a serious issue after a disappointing league start for Bayern.

Turning down their fiercest national rival for the moment eases the tensions on Munich after Bayern couldn't win a game in the pre-season preparation, followed by a 1-1 draw in their league opener at Moenchengladbach.

The Bavarians managed to deal with the growing pressure surprisingly well. Dortmund's tactical system, using a midfield diamond, might have played in the Bavarian's hands.

Dortmund's midfield couldn't get hold of Bayern's full-back's such as Alphonso Davies steaming down the flank. Bayern's defense in the person of Niklas Suele and Dayot Upamecano delivered a satisfying job giving 21-year-old Haaland not much space.

Bayern over the 90 minutes dominated most of the game. If the Black and Yellow got through occasionally, the German national keeper provided a stunning save in each case.

Lewandowski underlined his exceptional position as the leading striker in German football and won the direct duel against Dortmund's striker star Erling Haaland.

Dortmund failed to get the Norwegian forward into a promising position often enough. An off-side called goal remained the poor crop for highly traded Haaland, who has scored 62 goals in 72 games in Borussia's shirt. The attacker lost all of his five games against Bayern.

The 2020 FIFA World footballer Lewandowski turned into the man of the match despite his late pre-season training start after he played for Poland at the delayed 2020 Euro while Haaland enjoyed a longer vacation break before taking up training earlier than his competitor by far.

Bayern coach Nagelsmann won his first title as a professional coach and created a perfect season start grabbing the first trophy.

"We showed a great mentality but couldn't get through as much as we wanted," Dortmund's team-captain Marco Reus said.

Bayern coach Nagelsmann praised his team's defense and mentioned the upswing of new arrival Upamecano.

"This title goes to my predecessor Hansi Flick and the team for their great last season, but I am happy to have achieved my first victory as Bayern coach," Nagelsmann added. Enditem