Borussia Dortmund 2 - 0 Mainz: Borussia Dortmund keep Bayern Munich on their toes with victory over Mainz

Borussia Dortmund returned to within five points of league leaders Bayern Munich as Thomas Tuchel got one over his former club Mainz with a 2-0 win.

Marco Reus put Dortmund in front after half an hour and Shinji Kagawa made sure of the points midway through the second half.

The win ensures the Westphalians keep up the pressure on Bayern with eight games of the season remaining, while they are now just four points away from securing their return to the Champions League.

Having frustrated Bayern in Munich to become the first and only team to beat them there all season, Mainz set about cutting Dortmund down to size with similar tactics.

They kept things tight at the back and waited for Dortmund to commit too many players forward before having a go at them on the counter-attack.

It took Dortmund 30 minutes to find a way through, but once Reus latched onto Gonzalo Castro's delightful ball and dispatched it past Loris Karius, there was no going back.

Karius had to make saves from Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Reus and even one of his own defenders to keep his side just a goal behind at half-time.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was denied his 23rd goal of the season by the Mainz keeper, who was fighting a personal battle against one of the strongest attacks in the league - and holding his own.

He thwarted the Gabon international three times before he was finally beaten by Kagawa, with Aubameyang the provider.

The final 20 minutes were almost like a training exercise with Dortmund saving their energy for Tottenham in the Europa League on Thursday, while Mainz were unwilling to put up much of a fight.