Disappointed looks: That should change at Borussia Dortmund for the second half of the season.Image: imago/ team 2
Bundesliga
The first half of the Bundesliga season was disappointing for Borussia Dortmund. After 15 match days, the black and yellow went into the World Cup break in sixth place. With 25 points, BVB has nine points fewer than at the same time last season. The minimum goal of qualifying for the Champions League would not have been achieved at the moment. Compared to the first half of the season, a lot has to change in Dortmund – but there is also reason for hope.
Haller’s comeback provides more offensive options
It was a moment that put a smile on the faces of all football fans across the club. 176 days after the testicular cancer diagnosis, Sébastien Haller came on as a substitute in the 74th minute of the 5-1 friendly win against Fortuna Düsseldorf. In the following test against FC Basel, he promptly scored a hat-trick. In the Ruhr area one can therefore have justified hopes of playing in the opening game against Augsburg on January 22nd.
Haller made his debut for BVB at the training camp in Marbella.Image: dpa / David Indian song
That would be extremely important for Dortmund. The team could finally come up with the desired solution that they worked out before the season. After Haller’s failure, Anthony Modeste was signed from 1. FC Köln, who was only metaphorically up in the air in Dortmund, but literally up in the air at Effzeh. The Cologne system was heavily geared towards crosses, so far Terzić seemed simply overwhelmed technically for short passing games. The conversion of chances also left a lot to be desired.
As a result, 18-year-old Youssoufa Moukoko got more playing time and impressed with his performances. The competition with Haller should spur both on and provide more variety on the offensive. In Dortmund they are now praying for a “Hallerlujah”.
Injury returnees should inspire competition
Dortmund is a team that has an above-average number of bad luck with injuries. This is nothing new. Although the Westphalians had strengthened their fitness team at the beginning of the season, many players were absent for long stretches this season as well.
Statistically, BVB players were out the longest last season, and this season they are in second place behind FC Augsburg.
Marco Reus has been out for a long time this season due to ankle problems. Image: imago/ Ulrich Wagner
As of now – and that’s good news from Dortmund’s point of view – all the players are fit except for Thomas Meunier. This not only means that BVB can play as a regular team, but also that the competition in training means that everyone really has to prove themselves. Certain players were placed at times because there was simply no alternative. This can – at least subconsciously – lead to not always giving 100 percent. Jude Bellingham also remarked this recently to the “table football“:
“There is competition for places, which gets the best out of everyone in training. And when the intensity of training gets better, we play better at the weekend.”
The tiresome mentality question of BVB
It is the evergreen in BVB’s problem bingo. The question of mentality. In this case, mentality does not mean the knee-jerk, anachronistic call for “types” à la Mario Basler. It means the simple attitude of how to go into a duel, prevent a counterattack or offer running paths on the offensive.
The offensive game, but above all the defensive appearance, was pervaded in some games by an inexplicable listlessness.
There was also a series of individual errors and a weakness in standards. Both have been essential features of BVB for years. “Now we have to roll up our heads – and our sleeves too”the popular German philosopher Lukas Podolski once said – and thus gets to the heart of the problem in Dortmund.
The team showed that they can do things differently in the 2-2 win against FC Bayern at the beginning of October, when they caught up from a 0-2 deficit.
Bellingham and the balance in midfield
He was Borussia Dortmund’s life insurance in the first half of the season: Jude Bellingham. No player in the league played more minutes than he did in the first half of the season – all of them.
Bellingham is the key player at BVB. Image: www.imago-images.de / RHR-Foto
He is indispensable for BVB both offensively and defensively. However, his flexibility often comes at the expense of balance in midfield. His excursions into the offensive inspire BVB’s development of chances, but often tear large gaps in midfield. This is not least due to the partner who is placed at the 19-year-old’s side.
In the England national team at the World Cup, Bellingham played in a three-man midfield with Declan Rice and Jordan Henderson – two regular sixes. Because of their defensive coverage, he had the freedom to go on the offensive at will. At BVB, however, the orientation is different.
Jude Bellingham played a strong World Cup for the Three Lions.Image: imago/ Uk Sports Pics Ltd
At the start of the season, Mo Dahoud played alongside the young star, who, like the Englishman himself, is more of an eight-type. Emre Can, who is extremely error-prone at BVB, had to step in due to injury. Only new signing Salih Özcan proved to be a promising option for defensive midfield.
The fact that the 19-year-old Englishman leads the league with 245 tackles won may hide the fact that that Bellingham tends to prefer to stay ahead. So Edin Terzić has to sharpen his tactical instructions in order not to be countered headlessly when he loses the ball.
In the training camp in Marbella, this seemed to be beginning to bear fruit. BVB experimented there with a 4-1-4-1 formation in order to defend higher with stronger counter-pressing. However, this only works if the distances between the team members are correct.
Regain confidence in the squad
Basically, BVB has the potential and the squad to still be able to keep up with the top European level. Enthusiastic performances in the Champions League, such as against Manchester City or FC Sevilla, indicated the kind of explosion in performance BVB can be capable of.
Gregor Kobel is Dortmund’s number one and one of the best goalkeepers in the league. Image: imago/ kirchner-media
In the late autumn of his career, Mats Hummels experiences a second spring, According to the sports magazine “Kicker”, with Gregor Kobel the black and yellow have the best-rated goalkeeper between the posts. Since Julian Brandt has been able to occupy his desired position on the ten, he has played to unimagined heights, Niklas Süle gives up a rock-solid right-back, Salih Özcan has settled in well as a new signing. After all, Nico Schlotterbeck, who was much scolded recently, has the second-best duel quota in the league.
Unlike last season, BVB is lacking this season, especially on the offensive. Donyell Malen and Karim Adeyemi have not yet been able to gain a foothold at BVB, only in exceptional cases did their potential shine through. The two haven’t warmed to their role as wingers yet. For the second half of the season it is also important for them to improve their performance.
Donyell Malen (left) and Karim Adeyemi are still struggling at BVB.Image: imago/ district photo
However, the truth is that BVB is not doing as badly as is often thought. It is clear that sixth place in the Bundesliga is not enough. With just two points behind fourth place in the table, Dortmund is within striking distance of a Champions League rank.
Speaking of which: In the premier class, Dortmund have confidently secured progress and will meet Chelsea in the round of 16, which is facing significantly bigger problems in England. In the DFB Cup in the round of 16 at the beginning of February, they will face VfL Bochum. A lot is still possible for BVB this season.
At the end of 2022, the Haas team decided not to renew the contract of 23-year-old Mick Schumacher. Because the racing team had taken its time with the decision, all the other cockpits were already occupied at the time, and Schumacher had not previously been given a place with another team. That’s why his Formula 1 career is now getting an involuntary turning point: He will only be a test driver for Mercedes next season.
