Internationally flying high, nationally in crisis mode: Borussia Dortmund has the best chance of going into the final for group victory in the Champions League, but is still in a low mood.
Before the duel with pursuers Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday (9 p.m./DAZN), BVB, which has slipped to fifth place in the Bundesliga, is leading Group F and would be there with a draw. This could reduce the pressure that has recently increased on Edin Terzic. “We are required to fight against all odds. We will invest everything in order to emerge from the group stage as winners,” said the coach, who has come under criticism.
Focused third
Only one win from the last six Bundesliga games and the cup exit in Stuttgart brought unpleasant headlines for Borussia and their coach. The “Bild” even described the three games up to the end of the first half of the season against Paris, Augsburg and Mainz as “atmosphere finals for Terzic”. Considerations about how BVB could be strengthened during the winter break are not currently a top priority for the coach: “The priority for me now is to think about the fact that we have three important games in the next six days.”
Nico Schlotterbeck is in good spirits that BVB will quickly get back on track and sees no reason for action: “We have a good atmosphere in the team and in the club. We’re trying to maintain that,” the defender commented on media reports to the contrary. The 24-year-old is hoping for a similarly strong performance from his team as against Newcastle United (1:0/2:0) and AC Milan (3:1): “We performed better in the Champions League than in the Bundesliga.”
According to Terzic, a similar cautious and defensive approach to the 2-0 defeat in Paris in mid-September is not to be expected. “If we are brave, if we bring energy on the pitch, we can cause a lot of problems for opponents.” When asked whether his team wanted revenge for the 2-0 loss in Paris, the coach replied: “I think revenge is the wrong word in sport. We are motivated by winning games. We play here in front of over 81,000 spectators is motivation enough.”
Avoid tough opponents in the round of 16
With a successful preliminary round finish against the French, who are still in danger of being eliminated from the Champions League, BVB could avoid difficult opponents in the round of 16, such as the teams Manchester City, FC Arsenal, Real Madrid or FC Barcelona, who have already been declared group winners, and in the draw on December 18th hope for an easier task in Nyon.
To Terzic’s delight, defense chief Mats Hummels, who was suspended after his red card against Leipzig (2:3) in the Bundesliga, is available. However, captain Emre Can will be missing because of his third yellow card. It will be decided at short notice whether Marcel Sabitzer and Marius Wolf will return to the squad. In particular, the loss of full-back Wolf would be problematic because his supposed replacement Thomas Meunier was not registered for the Champions League and is therefore not allowed to play. There is therefore a lot to be said for using Niklas Süle on the wing.
PSG coach Enrique: “We will win”
Former Dortmund player Ousmane Dembélé was spared a whistle concert from his opponent. The dribbling artist, who permanently fell out of favor with BVB fans when he left FC Barcelona on strike in 2017, is missing from the Ligue 1 leaders and suspended.
Despite the unfavorable starting position, coach Luis Enrique goes into the game with a lot of confidence: “Big clubs play big matches every month. If you don’t like the pressure, you can’t sign for a big club. We can win the game tomorrow and we will win the game win tomorrow.”
The Dortmund police rate the game as a high-risk game and are preparing for 4,000 fans from France. At the last meeting in Dortmund in 2020 there were several arrests.
