The Daily Bee: Julian Rijkhoff Brace Pushes BVB U-19s Past Schalke

Schalke are back in the Bundesliga, which means it’s time for Borussia Dortmund fans’ favorite tradition: beating Schalke. It was not the senior squad, but the U-19s, who beat the Smurfs 3-1. Julian Rijkhoff notched a brace within the first 20 minutes, showing why he’s considered such a promising player.

In other youth squad news, Tom Rothe returned from a muscle injury for the Derby, while Mateu Morey made his long-awaited return for the U-23s.

Speaking of once-big clubs that have declined: Manchester United. It’s always good to keep things in perspective. Despite the win on Friday, I wasn’t happy with BVB’s performance. Last season was a nonstop string of injuries and disappointments. What we’ve been learning, over the last two weeks, though, is that things can always be a lot worse. The Red Devils are showing us that there is almost no depth that a once-great club can fall to:

It’s not like BVB haven’t had bad losses over the last few seasons, but for the club to have two in the opening two matches of the season is pretty brutal. They’re gonna have to turn things around fast if they want to get anywhere.

The Links

• For the second straight year, RB Leipzig have gotten off to a slow start in the Bundesliga, dropping points of each of their first two games. Will this be the second year in a row that their manager gets the sack before the New Year?

• Former BVB manager Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte got into some shenanigans and tom foolery after the final whistle in yesterday’s match between Chelsea and Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.
• According to Ruhr Nachrichten, despite various rumors from the Italian media, Manuel Akanji has not received any official offers from any Serie A clubs.

The Daily Buzz

How would you go about Manchester United? And should Domenico Tedesco’s job be in trouble?