Bundesliga: Kagawa scores on his Dortmund return; Bayern wins again

BERLIN — Shinji Kagawa starred on his return for Borussia Dortmund in a 3-1 win over Freiburg, while Franck Ribery scored on his injury comeback as Bayern Munich defeated Stuttgart 2-0 in the Bundesliga in Saturday.

Kagawa, back at Dortmund after an unhappy two-year spell at Manchester United, was given a hero's welcome by fans who remembered his role in helping the club to back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012.

The Japan midfielder had a hand in Adrian Ramos' opening goal in the 34th minute, playing through Kevin Grosskreutz to cross for the Colombian striker at the post.

Kagawa then scored on a counterattack in the 41st, when Henrikh Mkhitaryan let Ramos' cross through for him to pick his spot with a low shot.

The attacking midfielder had to go off in the 64th with cramp, a "good sign" according to Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp.

"Shinji was smiling the whole time, at least until he got the cramp," Dortmund midfielder Sebastian Kehl said.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang secured the result with a chip over the outrushing goalkeeper in the 78th, three minutes after he came on as a substitute.

Oliver Sorg claimed Freiburg's consolation in the final minute, by which time the home side had already turned attention to Tuesday's visit of Arsenal in the Champions League.

Mario Goetze got Bayern off the mark in the 27th, and Ribery marked his return from a knee problem by scoring with five minutes remaining.

Mainz won 3-1 at Hertha Berlin, Wolfsburg earned a 1-1 draw at Hoffenheim, and promoted sides Paderborn and Cologne maintained their unbeaten status with a scoreless draw.

Borussia Moenchengladbach was hosting Schalke in the late game.

Bayern was hardly threatened by Stuttgart but made to work hard for its second win from three Bundesliga games.

Xabi Alonso made his home debut since moving from Real Madrid and it was the Spaniard's free kick that led to the opening goal. Goetze stopped Antonio Ruediger's attempted clearance, cut inside Vedad Ibisevic and shot through a host of players inside the far post.

Bayern defender Holger Badstuber, who recently returned after missing 20 months with a knee injury and two operations, had to go off before the break with a thigh muscle problem.

His substitute, the 17-year-old Gianluca Guadino, skipped past a host of Stuttgart defenders to create a good chance for David Alaba on the hour, only for the Austrian to fire over.

Ribery made an immediate impact after coming on as a substitute in the 68th. Four minutes later he set up Alonso's deflected effort off the post and Robert Lewandowski struck the post again from the rebound.

Lewandowski set up Ribery to seal the result with a low shot through the Stuttgart keeper's legs.

In Berlin, Mainz forward Shinji Okazaki scored on the rebound after Hertha goalkeeper Thomas Kraft twice saved from Koo Ja-cheol in the 36th, and Sami Allagui slid in to score against his former club in the 70th.

Ronny pulled one back with a penalty in the 86th, but Okazaki snuffed out any hope of a comeback with his second goal in injury time.

With 28 goals since January 2011, Okazaki is the highest scoring Japanese player to have played in the Bundesliga.

Ivica Olic's 89th-minute strike was enough to a point for Wolfsburg. Hoffenheim striker Anthony Modeste had put the home side ahead in the 55th.