Borussia Dortmund Maintains Perfect Bundesliga Start with 3-0 Win Over Paderborn

Borussia Dortmund kept their perfect start to the Bundesliga season alive with a commanding 3-0 home win over SC Paderborn 07, a result that underlined the gap between a title contender and a newly promoted side still feeling its way at this level.

Niko Kovac’s team have now taken nine points from nine. This one never really felt in doubt.

Flying start and Veerman’s first league bow

The afternoon carried an extra edge for Joey Veerman. The Dutch midfielder, already trusted in the DFB-Pokal against HEBC Hamburg and in the Champions League against Villarreal, was handed his first Bundesliga start. He slotted straight into the rhythm.

Dortmund set the tone almost immediately. After just five minutes, Fábio Silva burst through the middle, showed composure to round goalkeeper Nahuel Noll, and calmly rolled in the opener. One chance, one goal, 1-0.

Dortmund smelled blood. Veerman tested Noll with a driven effort, while Jobe Bellingham dragged a shot inches wide as yellow shirts poured forward. Paderborn, pinned back but not entirely passive, offered a reminder of their threat when Laurin Curda hammered a shot into the side-netting from a tight angle.

The hosts kept tightening the screw. Just before the break, Serhou Guirassy twice thought he had doubled the lead. First came a delicate dink, then a firm header. Both finishes were tidy, both celebrations cut short by offside flags. The score stayed at 1-0, but the pattern of the game was clear.

Control after the interval, Nmecha takes over

The second half resumed with Dortmund still dictating the tempo. They moved the ball with authority, kept Paderborn chasing, and carved out enough chances to kill the contest long before the final whistle.

Ethan Nwaneri found space and missed. Bellingham drove at the defence but couldn’t find the finish. Guirassy, desperate to see his name on the scoresheet for real this time, also passed up an opportunity. Paderborn, by contrast, rarely strung together anything that resembled a sustained attack.

The pressure finally told, and it came from the bench.

Felix Nmecha stepped on and changed the mood. Ten minutes from time, he picked up the ball on the edge of the box, threw in a sharp step-over to unbalance his marker and curled a precise shot into the far corner for 2-0. The goal matched the performance: confident, assured, ruthless.

Dortmund weren’t done. Marcel Sabitzer thundered a shot against the crossbar as the hosts chased a third that felt inevitable.

It arrived in style. Nmecha, now brimming with confidence, produced the moment of the match with a spectacular overhead kick to make it 3-0 and complete his brace. A straightforward win, sealed with a flourish.

Three games, three wins, and a squad already showing depth and variety. If this is Dortmund still warming up, what happens when they hit full speed?