BERLIN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Serhou Guirassy's late goal helped Borussia Dortmund beat newly-promoted St. Pauli 2-1 in the opening match of the seventh round of the German Bundesliga on Friday.
The BVB controlled possession from the kick-off and went close after just six minutes when Guirassy tested St. Pauli goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj from the edge of the area.
The visitors from the north were looking for counterattacks and were unlucky on the half-hour mark when Morgan Guilavogui's goal was ruled out for offside following a free kick.
However, it was the hosts who opened the scoring just before the break when Pascal Gross's cross into the box was met by Ramy Bensebaini, who headed home from close range.
After the restart, it took Dortmund some time to find their feet, but they wasted two promising chances as Guirassy couldn't beat Vasilj and Donyell Malen failed to connect with a cross at the far post.
St. Pauli stunned Dortmund in the 78th minute when Eric Smith curled the ball into the top left-hand corner from 16 metres out.
Dortmund were unimpressed and five minutes later grabbed the lead when Jamie Gittens' cross into the box found Guirassy, who headed home from a central position to make it 2-1.
St. Pauli continued to pose a threat and almost equalized in stoppage time, but Adam Dzwigala shot wide from six meters out.
The result sees BVB move up to fourth in the table, while St. Pauli drop to 16th.
"We played well. We defended too deep in the first half, but it is always difficult to keep Dortmund at bay. I am proud of the boys despite the defeat," said St. Pauli coach Alexander Blessin.
"We played well in the first half, but we didn't expect St Pauli to be so defensive. The team stayed calm. We needed a bit of time in the second half. The good thing was that responded well to the equalizer," said Dortmund coach Nuri Sahin.
On Saturday, defending champions Bayer Leverkusen host Eintracht Frankfurt, Hoffenheim face Bochum, Freiburg travel to Augsburg, Mainz see second-placed Leipzig, Borussia Monchengladbach clash with Heidenheim and leaders Bayern Munich encounter Stuttgart. ■
