Jude Bellingham enjoyed the ovation of the fans in a triumphant pose. With arms outstretched, the young Dortmund star stood in front of the roaring south stand and was celebrated for his first Bundesliga brace (2nd/53rd minute).
At the 5-0 (3-0) goal gala of Borussia, who played like a different player in comparison to the dreary previous weeks, over VfB Stuttgart, the English international stole the show from all his fellow campaigners and became the face of the trend reversal longed for in Dortmund – just in time for the top class hit against Manchester City.
Sports director Sebastian Kehl was enthusiastic: “For us, he was again the one who steers the game in the right direction. So he is incredibly valuable for the team.”
Praise from the BVB coach
Led by Bellingham, the fun of football returned to BVB. After dubious performances without passion and falling to eighth place, the supposed title contender this time appeased the recently growing crowd of critics. Similar to Kehl, Edin Terzic also emphasized the performance of the midfielder, who has already scored eight competitive goals this season and has long been one of the leading players: “Jude did really well today. It’s extraordinary at that age, at 19, like that playing football consistently.”
It seems as if the football teacher’s speeches and the pronunciations of the pros have had an effect over the past few days. Unlike last time, the team convinced with the highest win of the season with great willingness to fight, a lot of humor and high effectiveness. Further goals from Niklas Süle (13th), Giovanni Reyna (44th) and Youssoufa Moukoko (72nd) rounded off the strong performance.
“The best reaction to criticism is to win games – in this way, of course. The joy of playing is still dormant in us,” said Julian Brandt. The midfielder is hoping for a lasting turnaround: “We talked about everything that needed to be talked about and hopefully we learned our lessons once and for all. That was a good first step and we have to keep at it.”
Despite all the joy about the positive reaction of his pros, Terzic didn’t quite believe in the sense of achievement. After all, his team is known as a moody diva. With a serious expression, the 39-year-old coach called for more consistency: “We know what has happened in the last few weeks. We have to continue right now – and not praise too much. We don’t want to be satisfied with a win, but one now start series.”
Now against Man City and Haaland
His team will be challenged again on Tuesday – at a much higher level. In the fifth group game of the Champions League against the star ensemble from Man City around former Dortmund player Erling Haaland, it will not be as easy as against Stuttgart with scoring goals. However, Terzic is in good spirits that the thrashing of Stuttgart will provide tailwind in the fight for the round of 16 of the European premier class: “We hope that we can draw a lot of positive energy and self-confidence from it.”
In the games against the English champions from Manchester and next Saturday against the last strong fourth-placed team from Frankfurt, it will be shown how stable the supposed upswing is. At least for a short time, everyone involved took a deep breath. “I think everyone can go home with a smile. That was really good for us in the current phase,” commented sporting director Kehl. Terzic saw it similarly: “It’s good not to have to scold so much.”
