Achraf Hakimi brace helps Borussia Dortmund beat Slavia Praha in the Champions League

Achraf Hakimi was the star of the show as Borussia Dortmund got their Champions League campaign up and running with a 2-0 win over Slavia Praha.

Lucien Favre made four changes to the side that was held to a 2-2 draw by Werder Bremen on Saturday, with Mats Hummels, Raphael Guerreiro, Thomas Delaney and Julian Brandt all coming into the side. Borussia Dortmund made a strong start to the game and should have taken the lead in just the second minute, but Jadon Sancho’s effort was well saved by the Slavia goalkeeper.

More good work from Sancho led to Achraf Hakimi getting a big chance inside the box, but the Moroccan international fired his shot just wide. Slavia started to grow into the game soon after, and Roman Bürki had to be at his best to prevent Masopust from scoring, after he was played through on goal by Stanciu.

Jadon Sancho then showed his quality once again and nearly teed up Marco Reus for the opener, but his low cross in the 27th minute was just ahead of the Dortmund captain, who was offside anyway.

Eight minutes later, and Borussia Dortmund finally landed the first blow, and it was Achraf Hakimi who got the goal. The Real Madrid loanee made a marauding run from inside his own half, dribbled past a Slavia defender and their goalkeeper, before finding the net with a superb finish.

Hakimi came close to adding to his tally just minutes later, but he could not apply the finish this time. The two sides went into half time with Borussia Dortmund holding a narrow lead.

Slavia Praha returned from the break looking like a completely different side, and caused quite a few problems to Borussia Dortmund’s defense.

But it was Borussia Dortmund who had the first big chance of the second half, with Jadon Sancho going one on one with the goalkeeper. But a heavy touch saw him lose control at the crucial moment. Slavia striker Stanislav Tecl was then played through on goal, but he fired his effort just wide.

The Czech side then upped the anti, and started to put more and more pressure on the Dortmund goal. The Black and Yellows looked passive, and at times found it hard to keep possession for ten consecutive seconds.

But it was Borussia Dortmund who struck again, with Achraf Hakimi getting his second goal of the night. The 20 year old was played in by Julian Brandt, and showed great composure to find the net after beating a couple of defenders.

The goal sealed a hard fought victory for Borussia Dortmund, who despite not being at their best, got the job done in the end. The win and a clean sheet will be a welcome result for Lucien Favre, who has come under a bit of pressure in recent weeks.

Borussia Dortmund now have four points after two games in their Champions League group, and travel to Inter Milan on matchday 3.