Borussia Dortmund have ended a run of three Bundesliga matches without a win by beating Mainz 05 2-0 at the Coface Arena.
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The first clear chance of the game fell to the hosts after a lively start as Pierre Bengtsson drifted out wide to deliver a low cross which reached Yoshino Muto, whose effort from close range was kept out by Roman Burki.
Dortmund started to cause problems at the other end as their attack stepped up the tempo, and the deadlock was broken by the hosts in the 18th minute.
A mistake from Niko Bungert proved to be key as he gifted the ball to Henrikh Mkhitaryan, before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang spotted the right pass to allow Marco Reus to slot home.
Dortmund were also guilty of losing possession too easily, but they enjoyed a slice of luck when Yunus Malli dragged his shot wide of the post after finding space in the box.
Opportunities continued to arrive, and Burki had to be alert to protect Dortmund's lead before the break when he tipped Jairo Samperio's free kick over the crossbar.
Thomas Tuchel's side were handed the chance to double their advantage early in the second half when Bungert's decision to challenge Aubameyang resulted in the visitors winning a penalty, despite the tackle appearing to take place on the edge of the box.
Reus stepped up from 12 yards, but Loris Karius guessed correctly to make the save and Park Joo-ho could only slice the rebound wide of the post.
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Mainz enjoyed a spell on top after narrowly avoiding going further behind, and Burki was forced into action once again to deny Muto, who evaded two challenges to create space in the box.
Dortmund perhaps should have put the result beyond doubt as they continued to find space in attacking areas, but Aubameyang was unable to find the target with an effort which drifted over after a patient move handed him the ball in a promising position.
It was an unusually disappointing night in front of goal for the Gabon international, who missed another chance to score his 11th Bundesliga goal of the season when he sprinted clear of the Mainz defence before pulling his shot just wide of the post.
Aubameyang refused to let the misses stop him from having an impact late on as he led a break before squaring to Mkhitaryan, who calmly took the ball past Karius and tapped in to wrap up the win.
Callum Mulvihill
