In a display of resilience and talent, Borussia Dortmund's youth teams continued their successful run with decisive victories over Essen. The U19 team emerged victorious with a 5-1 scoreline, while the U17 squad secured a thrilling 3-2 win, marking a strong performance across the board.
The U19 match saw Borussia Dortmund missing key players due to illness and injury, including top scorer Bjarki Gardarsson and Amine Lettifi, who had recently shone in a friendly match against Viktoria Köln. Despite these absences, the team quickly established dominance on the pitch. Ahmad Najdi opened the scoring just two minutes into the match, calmly finishing after a well-placed through ball from Tom Faust.
Although the visitors from Essen responded with determination, managing to pull one back through a penalty converted by Fadih Vasic, Dortmund maintained their composure. Justin Hoy restored the two-goal lead with a powerful shot from 16 meters, capitalizing on a well-executed passing move initiated by Najdi. As the first half concluded, Niklas König added a third goal for Dortmund in stoppage time, showcasing the team's efficiency despite earlier struggles.
Head coach Felix Hirschnagl recognized the need for improvement during halftime and made three substitutions to bolster the team's focus. The second half saw Dortmund's defense tighten, and they created several chances, including a near miss from Hoy, who was denied by Essen's goalkeeper Colin Vogel. After Essen's Vasic received a red card in the 80th minute, Dortmund comfortably closed out the match, with late goals from Tom Faust and Niklas König sealing the 5-1 victory.
Hirschnagl reflected on the match, noting, “We had a lot of poor first touches and misplaced passes, especially in the first half, and from a footballing point of view, we were clearly below our potential. We did well without the ball. In the end, our efficiency was decisive.”
Looking ahead, the U19 squad will shift their focus to the UEFA Youth League, where they will face Villarreal CF on September 8 at the Youth Performance Center. Additionally, they will compete against Fortuna Düsseldorf in the DFB Youth League on September 13.
Meanwhile, the U17 team, coached by Karsten Gorges, also demonstrated their mettle by coming from behind twice to secure a 3-2 victory against Essen. After falling behind early, Niclas Goldberg equalized just before halftime. The second half mirrored the first, with Yusuf Galalie scoring to put Essen ahead again. However, Janis Tunkel leveled the score, and Emir Kirar netted the winner in the 82nd minute, ensuring a perfect record of five wins in five matches for the U17 team.
The U17 squad will look to continue their winning streak in their next home game against VfL Osnabrück on September 12.
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