Shinji Kagawa sealed Borussia Dortmund’s 3-0 win over Paderborn while Bayern Munich closed in on the Bundesliga title with a 2-0 win at Hoffenheim. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang crossed for Henrikh Mkhitaryan to head in Dortmund’s opener just after halftime, then scored seven minutes later. Kagawa sealed it with a fine effort near the end.
It was Dortmund’s first game since Juergen Klopp announced on Thursday his end-of-season departure after seven years. “We wanted to give the coach a great send-off,” Dortmund defender Marcel Schmelzer said. Sebastian Rode’s 38th-minute strike and an own goal from Andreas Beck were enough for Bayern to move a step to claiming the title. Bayern could wrap it up next weekend if Wolfsburg loses to Schalke on Sunday.
Dortmund’s win moved the side three points off Augsburg in the last Europa league qualification spot, one week after being just six points clear of the relegation. The buildup to Bayern’s game was dominated by the unexpected resignation of longtime team doctor Hans-Wilhelm Mueller-Wohlfahrt following the side’s Champions league quarterfinal first-leg defeat, 3-1 at Porto. Rode ended the stalemate when he took the ball away from a defender with his first touch and curled inside the far post with his next.