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Marco Rose insisted he took no extra satisfaction from beating Borussia Dortmund after he began his RB Leipzig tenure with a 3-0 thrashing of his former employers.
Goals from Willi Orban, Dominik Szoboszlai and Amadou Haidara got Rose’s Leipzig reign off to the ideal start on Saturday, as they moved to within four points of Dortmund in the Bundesliga table.
Rose led Dortmund to a second-placed finish in his single season in charge last term, but was dismissed in May.
His exit allowed Edin Terzic, who performed the role of technical director during Rose’s reign, to step back into the Dortmund dugout, and some had suggested the duo were set for an awkward reunion at the Red Bull Arena.
Speaking to Sky Sports, however, Rose said he took “zero point zero” satisfaction from beating his former colleague.
“I really enjoyed being with the club. This is a great club,” he said.
“I’ve met great people. In the end, it didn’t fit any more, I had to go. I have a very good relationship with Edin. I wish BVB and the boys personally all the best.”
Rose was later full of praise for his side’s performance, declaring: “We were very present from the first minute. It wasn’t perfect in terms of content, but we were intense, showed something and took the whole stadium with us.
“But I’m very happy with how we performed today. One of the keys to our success was definitely that we were able to use our pace and bring the quality of play onto the pitch.
“Leipzig is my home, with which I identify strongly. I feel very comfortable, I really like the people, and you saw that you can spark something together here.”
Leipzig’s clean sheet was just the second they have ever kept against Dortmund, with the other coming in their first competitive meeting in September 2016. Die Roten Bullen had conceded at least once in each of the teams’ subsequent 12 meetings.
Rose, meanwhile, has claimed just his second victory in his last seven games against BVB (five losses).
Goalscorer Szoboszlai worked with Rose at Salzburg between 2017 and 2019, and says he owes his career to the 45-year-old.
“I’ve known Marco since my time in Salzburg,” he said. “We had both good and bad times together. But it’s very clear, if he hadn’t been there in my career, I wouldn’t be where I am now.”
Rose will face another of his former clubs when Leipzig go to Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga next Saturday, though he must first navigate a Champions League trip to reigning champions Real Madrid on Wednesday.
