Dortmund beat Augsburg and move within reach of Bundesliga title

Berlin: Sébastien Haller fired Borussia Dortmund to the top of the Bundesliga with one round remaining by scoring two goals in a 3-0 win at 10-man Augsburg on Sunday.

The Ivory Coast striker made the breakthrough against the home team’s stubborn defense in the 59th minute and sealed the win in the 84th. Julian Brandt got Dortmund’s third in injury time.

It lifted Dortmund two points clear of 10-time defending champion Bayern Munich going into the final round. Bayern’s defeat at home to Leipzig handed the initiative to Dortmund on Saturday.

Dortmund, which was without star player Jude Bellingham because of a knee injury, pressured from the start and caused several alarms in the tightly packed Augsburg defense.

Augsburg goalkeeper Tomáš Koubek deflected Haller’s shot over in the best early chance.

Dortmund’s frustration appeared to be growing until Felix Uduokhai was sent off in the 39th with a direct red card after a VAR review for stopping Donyell Malen when the Dortmund winger would have been through on goal.

If anything, however, it ensured the home team would be even more defensive. Enrico Maaßen’s side had one shot at goal in the first half, compared to 17 from the visitors.

Brandt stung Koubek’s hands to start the second half, when again patience was called for as Augsburg defended in numbers.

Haller made the breakthrough when Maximilian Bauer cut out Malen’s cross but let the ball fall for Haller, who needed no second invitation to turn and shoot inside the far post.

Gregor Kobel needed to be alert to prevent Irvin Cardona from equalizing before Karim Adeyemi missed another good chance for Dortmund at the other end.

Dortmund coach brought on Marco Reus in the 81st and the captain had an immediate impact, drawing a good save from Koubek three minutes later. Haller was there to seal the result from the rebound.

Dortmund hosts Mainz and Bayern visits Cologne for their final games on Saturday.