Borussia Dortmund loanee Ethan Nwaneri admitted that the win over Paderborn on Saturday wasn't their 'best game'.
The BVB secured a 3-0 victory over the promoted side, which looks big on paper, but the side struggled for large spells between their first and second goals.
Paderborn had a lot of possession and territory too, but failed to capitalize on it effectively, whereas Serhou Guirassy had two goals disallowed for offside in the opening stanza.
Two late goals from substitute Felix Nmecha - in the 80th and 89th minute - eventually consolidated Dortmund's grip on the match.
Nwaneri, who made his first start for the club here, lamented the difficult period they had to endure early on but felt the win regardless was encouraging.
"I don’t think we played our best game. We found a way to win again. That’s a good sign, but I think we really made it hard on ourselves at times. It was especially difficult in the final third. Still, we can build on this, and it’s a good result."
It took Dortmund only five minutes to take the lead, as Serhou Guirassy released Fabio Silva with a vertical ball to chase on the counter before making a sumptuous finish into the far corner.
But thereon, the BVB struggled to build on that early momentum. They looked stronger after the break, especially with all the substitutes injecting pace and firepower.
Nmecha finally doubled their advantage with a fearsome strike from range after Maximilian Beier supplied him with a pass.
Nine minutes later, he added a third - and the final nail in Paderborn's coffin - with a spectacular bicycle kick off Marcel Sabitzer's cross.
Despite there being a room for improvement, Nwaneri is inclined to look on the bright side as to how it's all coming together for Dortmund slowly.
"We’re making good progress. There are still situations where we need to work on being more in sync. But I think everything is coming together nicely. We just have to keep training, keep playing, and hopefully we’ll keep getting better and better."
With three league wins to start off the Bundesliga, Dortmund have made their best start to a top-flight season since 2015-16 and currently boast a five-game winning run in all competitions too.
The BVB return to action on Saturday when VfB Stuttgart host them in another potential banana skin at the MHPArena for an exciting Bundesliga clash.
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