Borussia Dortmund manager Niko Kovac has heaped praise on his side for an impressive display against Augsburg on Saturday.
The BVB overcame the Fuggerstadter in a 2-0 victory, with Karim Adeyemi and Luca Reggiani bagging apiece in either half to seal all three points.
Unlike their recent wins, Dortmund were actually dominant here. They took their chances clinically while looking solid at the back as Augsburg never stood a chance.
Kovac was delighted with his side's performance on the night and exalted their creative spirit on the day. Speaking at the press conference after the game, he said:
""We played a really good game from start to finish, dominated our opponents, didn’t give them a chance, and not only scored two brilliant goals, but also created three or four excellent chances in the end.""said Kovac
Just 13 minutes into the kick-off, Adeyemi fired the Black and Yellows in front following an excellent cross from Maximilian Beier before teenager Reggiani doubled their advantage just before the hour mark from a corner by Julian Ryerson.
Having completed the league double over Dortmund last season, Augsburg looked like a pale shadow for their former selves here. The Bavarian outfit spent much of the evening on the backfoot and were restricted to just a few shots.
It was a much-improved display from the BVB, who appeared sloppy in their 2-1 win over FC Koln last weekend despite boasting a lion's share of possession. They also conceded a goal late on which served to make for a nervous finale.
But last night, there were no late scares as Dortmund held firm to seal a clean sheet. Reflecting on this improved display, Kovac further added:
""The way we played was the exact opposite of what we saw last week, when we won but I wasn’t satisfied with the performance. Today, everything went perfectly. The team showed a really good response compared to the Cologne game.""said the Croatian
Dortmund now have 58 points from 26 games. With leaders Bayern Munich dropping points to Bayer Leverkusen on the same day, the gap between the Der Klassiker rivals was reduced to nine points with nine games left in the Bundesliga campaign.
Although the side has an easier run-in between now and the end of the season, it's difficult to see them close the gap on their eternal rivals as Dortmund are staring down the probability of a sixth consecutive trophyless campaign.