Young England Player Scores Brace, Dortmund Work Hard To Beat Brugge

Young England star Jamie Gittens (center) scored a brace while leading Borussia Dortmund to a 3-0 win over Club Brugge in the Champions League. (X/@BVB)

JAKARTA - Borussia Dortmund had to work hard before beating Club Brugge 3-0 in the Champions League match at Jan Breydel Stadium, Brugge, Thursday, September 19, 2024 in the morning WIB. Young England star Jamie Gittens scored a brace that brought Dortmund to the first three points.

Dortmund did not stop orbiting young England players. After Jadon Sancho and then Jude Bellingham, now Dortmund hones his talent for Gittens. The England U-21 winger was also taken from Manchester City when he was 16 years old.

The German Bundesliga club then developed the talent of Gittens for two years in the junior team. In 2022, Gittens began to enter the senior team. Last season, he had become one of Dortmund's young stars. Even though he has been fielded as a starter, Gittens is also often grounded and has only been included as a substitute.

Gittens has also become a pillar of Die Borussen this season. He was always played by coach Nuri Sahin and immediately brought Dortmund to victory in the inaugural Bundesliga match. Gittens scored a brace when Dortmund won 2-0 over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Now when returning to compete in European competitions, Gittens, who came on as a substitute, became the star of Dortmund's victory. In the match against Brugge, they had experienced difficulties. Even Dortmund was under Brugge's pressure throughout the first half.

The hosts had several excess chances that should have been converted into goals. Including midfielder Hugo Vettesen's shot which bounced over the crossbar. In addition, the chances in front of Dortmund's goal also failed to be completed.

Not only that, the Brugge players repeatedly asked for penalties because they often experienced violations in the restricted area. Only their penalty request was never heeded by referee Irfan Peljto.

In the second half, Dortmund began to rise. But Brugge still controlled the game even though he still couldn't score a goal.

Vetlesen came back close to breaking into Dortmund's goal when there was chaos. Unfortunately, his shot still hit the post. Likewise, Raphael Onyedika's short-range shot was saved by goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.

Kobel also made a brilliant save for Vetlesen's efforts. Furthermore, Hans Vanaken's shot soared. Brugge showed his maximum form until finally their goal conceded in the 76th minute.

Gittens, who came in to replace Marcel Sabitzer, managed to break Dortmund's deadlock. Winning 1-0, the 2024 Champions League finalist began to master the game. Especially after Gittens scored a brace in 86 minutes. Gittens' second goal seemed to confirm Dortmund's victory.

Moreover, front player Serhou Guirassy who was also fielded in the second half locked Dortmund's win in injury time. The score changed to 3-0 for the visitors and lasted until the end of the match.

Despite appearing as a substitute, Gittens was the winner so he was chosen as Player of the Match.

"I'm really happy to receive this award. Of course it means a lot to me. Moreover, I won it in the first match of [The Champions League]," Gittens said as quoted by the UEFA website.

"I was indeed asked to create more opportunities for the team. I tried to fulfill that demand. When I scored the first goal, we created more chances," he said again.

Meanwhile, Sahin said that if Dortmund deserved to win even though the team had to work hard to beat his opponent. "It's important for us to start it with a win in the away match. Moreover, we face strong opponents," said Sahin.

"Both teams were both good at attacking. Despite experiencing difficulties, we finally got a chance. In my opinion, we really deserved to win," he said.