The Borussia Dortmund U23s have started the New Year with a win. The Black & Yellows held on to beat 12th-placed Alemannia Aachen 2-1 in an intense Regionalliga match and strengthened their grip on second place. Ansgar Knauff scored both BVB goals.

The scenario: BVB went into 2021 in second place in the table. RW Essen's draw on Saturday left the Black & Yellows seven points adrift with two games in hand. The visitors from Aachen went into the match in 12th place.

Personnel matters: BVB boss Enrico Maaßen made three changes to the starting XI that faced the Fortuna Düsseldorf U23s last time out, with Stefan Drljaca, Patrick Osterhage and Taylan Duman replacing Luca Unbehaun, Aday Ercan and Alaa Bakir.

The match & analysis: It was clear from the opening stages which way the game would go. The dominant Black & Yellows exerted immense pressure and dictated the play. The visitors from Aachen, meanwhile, hardly had a sniff of the ball and entrenched themselves in their own half. It seemed only a question of time until BVB broke the deadlock, and the opening goal came in the 10th minute. Richmond Tachie broke into the box on the right and squared the ball towards Ansgar Knauff at the back post, who dispatched it into the far corner.

The Borussia players were clear enjoying themselves, and their dominance of possession, the numerous chances they created and the lovely link-up play to break through Aachen's compact defence met with approval from coach Enrico Maaßen. "Very good, boys" he bellowed from the dugout several times. Midway through the first period, Aachen started to venture forward occasionally – though without getting into shooting positions. Only BVB did that. Between the 25th and 29th minutes, Taylan Duman, Richmond Tachie and Moritz Broschinski all squandered chances to double the lead.

The men from the Kaiserstadt won their first corner on the half-hour mark. It was initially cleared by the Dortmund rearguard, but Oguzhan Aydogan had a go from around 20 metres out and fired it into the back of the net. Stefan Drljaca was powerless to keep out the strike, which was deflected twice on its way into the net. But BVB did not let their heads drop after being pegged back and immediately sought to get forward. There were no moments of danger before the break, however, and the half-time whistle sounded with the score 1-1.

BVB made a substitution prior to the restart, with Marco Hober coming on to replace the injured Patrick Osterhage. And it was Hober who teed up Ansgar Knauff in the 47th minute, the 19-year-old firing the ball into the top right corner of the goal from 16 metres to make it 2-1. BVB were back in front, and looked focused and dominant in the period that followed. As the game approached the hour mark, Enrico Maaßen opted to shuffle his pack a second time. Alaa Bakir replaced Moritz Broschinski in attack.

Aachen tried to work their way towards the Dortmund goal – but to no avail. The visitors found themselves up against a brilliantly organised team that dominated every aspect of the match. However, BVB did fail to kill the game during this period and so it remained on a knife-edge with only one goal separating the sides. That made for a frantic finish, with the final few minutes of the game developing into a real battle. Aachen threw everything forward once again and that presented the Black & Yellows with more opportunities to counter. BVB couldn't take those chances, but their defence was never under any real threat and they ultimately ran out deserved 2-1 winners.

The match reactions:

Ansgar Knauff: "It was a hard-fought game in the end. We gave it everything we had to bring home the three points. We made a very bright start and played superbly in the opening half-hour, by which point we should've been winning by a bigger margin. We then conceded an unlucky goal and that kept Aachen in the game. It became slightly hectic. We started the second half well by making it 2-1. Anything can happen when you lead narrowly like that. We could've decided the game earlier on, but no-one remembers that in the end."

Stefan Drljaca: "The three points are very important. In any case, the first game of the year is important to get back into your flow. We'd noticed that Aachen were an opponent that could be dangerous. The fact that we got the three points today was very important. This good feeling gives us a positive start to 2021."

Outlook: The Black and Yellow U23s are next in action next Saturday when they take on 1. FC Cologne. Kick-off is at 14:00 CET.

Team & goals

BVB U23s: Drljaca, Maloney, Hippe, Duman, Tachie (Finnsson, 70), Pfanne, Dams, Osterhage (Hober, 46), Broschinski (Bakir, 64), Knauff (Wanner, 81), Raschl

Goals: 1-0 Knauff (10), 1-1 Aydogan (29), 2-1 Knauff (47)