Dortmund, Germany – Marco Reus and Mario Gotze scored as two- time defending Bundesliga champion Borussia Dortmund picked where it left off last season with a 2-1 win over Werder Bremen on Friday.
Reus scored in the 11th minute and Gotze notched the match-winner nine minutes from time as Dortmund kicked off the 50th Bundesliga season with its 29th win in a row dating back to last September.
Dortmund finished last season on a 28-match undefeated run to establish a new record for points in a season with 81.
Reus, the marquee offseason addition, provided the early spark at Signal-Iduna Park against Bremen as he turned a defensive mistake into his first goal with his new club. Reus picked up a loose ball and slotted to the bottom left.
Bremen got its goal from a new addition, as fullback Theodor Gebre Selassi was able to turn a header inside the left post in the 75th minute, but Gotze came off the bench to rescue Dortmund.
Just four minutes after entering the match, Gotze accepted a pass from Robert Lewandowski and finished to the near post to open his account in the 81st.
Opening week continues Saturday, when Augsburg hosts Dusseldorf, Freiburg hosts Mainz, Greuther Furth hosts Bayern Munich, Hamburg hosts Nurnberg, Monchengladbach hosts Hoffenheim, Eintracht hosts Bayer Leverkusen, and Stuttgart hosts Wolfsburg. On Sunday, Hannover hosts Schalke.
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