Robert Lewandowski sends Borussia Dortmund top of Bundesliga

Robert Lewandowski of Borussia Dortmund scores his team’s first goal during the Bundesliga match against Werder Bremen at Signal Iduna Park on August 23, 2013 in Dortmund, Germany.

Robert Lewandowski‘s solitary goal in the second-half helped Borussia Dortmund defeat Werder Bremen at the Westfalenstadion. A 1-0 win over Werder Bremen in a one-sided game takes Dortmund at the top of the Bundesliga.

Lewandowski netted the only goal of the game in the 55th minute, but Dortmund will probably rue the fact that they should have won the match more convincingly, as they created enough chances to win by a much bigger margin.

Werder Bremen showed little intent to counter Dortmund’s relentless pressure and apart from Marko Arnautovic and Di Santo’s efforts before half-time, they had to defend for much of the game.

The chances were aplenty for the home side, with Marco Reus threatening the Bremen defence at will. But it was a combination of the Bremen goalkeeper and some poor finishing from Dortmund which ensured Bremen did not get humiliated.

The crossbar came to Bremen’s rescue early in the first half when Poland international Jakub Blaszczykowski’s shot was smashed off the bar. Then it was Lewandowski’s turn to rattle the Bremen defence went as he missed a sitter, before Arnautovic of Bremen almost put the visitors ahead on the stroke of half-time with a shot that just brushed the far post.

Dortmund started the second half where they left it in the first, with the home side’s dominance finally paying off when they scored 10 minutes in. Reus played the ball, from the right, to the unmarked Lewandowski, who coolly slotted past the Bremen goalkeeper.

An equaliser would have been harsh on Dortmund, but their failure to score a second goal meant they had kept Bremen in the game for throughout the 90 minutes. Fans feared the worst when former Wigan Athletic striker Franco Di Santo came on for his Bremen debut and almost scored, but Roman Weidenfeller’s alertness saved Dortmund four minutes from time.