Without the injured Serhou Guirassy, Dortmund were matched for long spells of a goalless first half by a bold Elversberg side, and lost Carney Chukwuemeka to injury after 34 minutes. Nmecha broke through ten minutes after the restart with a low drive from the edge of the box, then lashed in a second from 25 yards on 71 minutes. Substitute Noel Futkeu pulled one back with a spectacular scissor kick nine minutes from time, and Dortmund were left hanging on in a nervy finale before heading into the international break.
Below, GOAL rates Dortmund's players at Signal Iduna Park...
Goalkeeper & Defence
Gregor Kobel (7/10): Made six saves, the best of them a flying stop to keep Lukas Petkov's 34-yard free kick out of the top corner. Also blocked Francis Onyeka's close-range effort at his near post and tipped Maximilian Beier's stoppage-time deflection over the bar. Had no chance with Futkeu's acrobatic finish.
Joane Gadou (7/10): Read the game well at right-back, cutting out a dangerous one-two between Maurice Krattenmacher and Lasse Gunther in the first half. Krattenmacher did wriggle away from him to set up Onyeka's chance after the break. Replaced by Ramy Bensebaini on 67 minutes.
Waldemar Anton (7/10): Won his battles with Onyeka more often than not, including a crunching tackle just before the half-hour mark, though the forward escaped him to head over from a free kick early in the second half. Booked for a tactical foul on Krattenmacher on 76 minutes.
Related Topics
Nico Schlotterbeck (8/10): The captain was Dortmund's most reliable defender, calm under pressure as Elversberg pushed forward. His long ball created Jobe Bellingham's chance straight after the restart, and he also set up a Beier effort before half-time.
Daniel Svensson (6/10): Fortunate to escape a red card for a studs-up challenge on Lukas Pinckert's ankle in the first half, an incident that eventually forced the defender off. Got forward to set up Bellingham's early chance and later teed up Bensebaini.
Midfield
Joey Veerman (7/10): Kept the ball moving in midfield and delivered from set pieces, but his biggest moment came at the other end, with a vital last-ditch clearance to deny David Mokwa five minutes from time.
Felix Nmecha (9/10): Man of the match. Opened the scoring with a low drive from 20 yards after Fabio Silva's lay-off, then rifled a 25-yard rocket into the bottom corner for his second. Also forced a save from Nicolas Kristof in the first half. Booked for a tactical foul on 22 minutes and was lucky to avoid a second yellow before half-time.
Jobe Bellingham (7/10): Busy throughout, firing three efforts narrowly wide and creating chances for Beier, Konstantinos Karetsas and Silva. Also tracked back well to stop Onyeka early on. Replaced by Marcel Sabitzer on 86 minutes.
Attack
Konstantinos Karetsas (7/10): Gave Gunther a torrid afternoon, repeatedly skipping past the left-back and crossing for a Nmecha header before winning the free kick that earned Gunther a yellow card. Tested Kristof twice and set up an early second-half chance for Silva. Replaced by Julian Ryerson on 67 minutes.
Fabio Silva (7/10): Leading the line with Guirassy injured, he brought down a long ball superbly and laid it off for Nmecha's opener. Should have scored in the first half when Kristof parried into his path, but scuffed the rebound wide from five yards. Booked on the hour and replaced by Ethan Nwaneri on 86 minutes.
Carney Chukwuemeka (6/10): Looked lively on the left, threading Nmecha through for a first-half chance and beating his man to cross from the byline, before pulling up with an apparent hamstring problem on 34 minutes.
Substitutes & Manager
Maximilian Beier (7/10): Replaced the injured Chukwuemeka and had three efforts blocked. His run into the box ended with the loose ball falling for Nmecha's second, earning him an assist, but he nearly turned a late corner into his own net before Kobel came to the rescue.
Ramy Bensebaini (6/10): Came on for Gadou and almost marked his introduction with an acrobatic effort that Maximilian Rohr blocked. Helped see out a nervy finish.
Julian Ryerson (6/10): Replaced Karetsas as Kovac looked to protect the lead. Did his defensive job, though Elversberg created more as the game wore on.
Ethan Nwaneri (N/A): Teed up Beier for a late shot that was blocked.
Marcel Sabitzer (N/A): Gave away a dangerous free kick on the edge of the box shortly after coming on.
Niko Kovac (7/10): His side made hard work of it, but a ninth league game without defeat keeps Dortmund level with Bayern. The forced change for Chukwuemeka brought on Beier, who had a hand in the second goal.