Norwegian sensation Erling Braut Haaland stole the limelight on Saturday as the German Bundesliga became the first major European football league to return since the coronavirus lockdown, with teams playing in empty, echoing stadiums.
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The 19-year-old striker claimed the first goal in Germany’s top flight for over two months to set Borussia Dortmund on the way to a 4-0 win over its local rival Schalke in the ‘Ruhr Derby’.
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Portuguese international Raphael Guerreiro then added two goals either side of a Thorgan Hazard strike as second-placed Dortmund moved to within a point of leader Bayern Munich, which is chasing an eighth straight title and plays Union Berlin away on Sunday.
Elsewhere, third-placed RB Leipzig was held to a 1-1 draw at home to Freiburg, leaving it four points off top spot.
Defender Manuel Gulde gave visitors Freiburg a shock lead and celebrated by elbow-bumping teammates, before Leipzig striker Yussuf Poulsen grabbed a late equaliser.
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The results: Borussia Dortmund 4 (Haaland 29, Guerreiro 45, 63, Hazard 48) bt Schalke 04 0; RB Leipzig 1 (Poulsen 77) drew with Freiburg 1 (Gulde 34); Hoffenheim 0 lost to Hertha Berlin 3 (Akpoguma 58-og, Ibisevic 60, Cunha 74); Fortuna Dusseldorf 0 drew with Paderborn 0; Augsburg 1 (Brooks 54-og) lost to VfL Wolfsburg 2 (Steffen 43, Ginczek 90+1) .