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Borussia Dortmund are having a tough time this season. Prior to their win against Mainz this midweek, the Black and Yellows were without a league win since September, which led to the sacking of former head coach Peter Bosz.
However, with the new and far more experienced boss at the helm, in shape of Peter Stoger, there are a lot of things BVB can do right in order to recover from their messy campaign so far this season.
Here are five reasons why Borussia Dortmund have every chance of bouncing back by the end of this season.
#5 The Peter Stoger effect
It's often a pattern that when a new coach arrives at the helm, the team morale significantly increases, even at the worst of times.
Borussia Dortmund were without a win since September before Stoger took the reigns from Bosz last week. Few training sessions, a couple of motivating pep-talks and an impressive performance against Mainz was all it took for the former Koln boss to get the side back on track.
The former Austria Wien manager is known for his ability to garner stability. He found resounding success during his time at Cologne, where he transformed the Billygoats into a Europa League team just a few years after helping them win promotion into the German top flight.
The Bundesliga just can't part ways with the Austria mastermind it seems. Having vast experience in the German top flight and a penchant for discipline, Stoger's influence will help BVB gain confidence for the second half of the season.
Stoger's not alone in his job of getting BVB back on track. Former Champions League winner with BVB, Jorg Heinrich, has joined the Austrian, as an assistant coach of Borussia Dortmund.
The 48-year-old has played for the club for almost five years, during which he managed to gain get the adulation the fans. He is a loved figure at Dortmund and his presence on the touchline along with club legend Michael Zorc will be equally vital for the team.
There have also been some whispers of Sebastian Kehl, another club legend, potentially joining the BVB camp in near future, which could be a dream come true for those passionate BVB supporters.
#4 Defensive solidity
Borussia Dortmund don't have the best defence in the league. And under Peter Bosz, their defensive woes just got from bad to worse.
The suicidal high line of defence, instilled by the former Ajax manager really dented their defensive stability. However, in the game against Mainz, it was clearly evident that Peter Stoger is here to solve their defensive problems this season.
The Austrian head coach loves his team to defend in deep blocks, with an extremely rigid defensive backline. Against Mainz, the Ruhr giants mostly planted a deep sitting backline, with the wingbacks mainly providing the primary attacking influence from the back, unlike Bosz, who mostly used centre-backs to help build up the attack, ultimately hindering defensive stability.
It will be interesting to see how he deals with this defensive issues against big teams or even smaller teams for that matter. But make no mistake, Stoger's defensive discipline will significantly help the side in ensuring they retain their status as a top three side.
#3 Players back from injury
Injuries to key players was one of the main reasons behind Peter Bosz's demise as BVB head coach. A total of no less than nine players are currently out injured for the Black and Yellows.
The list includes superstars such as Mario Gotze and Marco Reus along with key defender Lukasz Piszczek. Midfielders Gonzalo Castro and Sebastian Rode are also out with long-term injuries. Maximilian Philipp, who turned out to be a gem of a signing this summer, picked up a knee injury in the game against Leverkusen a few weeks ago.
That being said, Gotze, Castro, Piszczek and Rode are all expected to return in January. Reus returned to ball-training earlier this week, meaning Stoger will have a lot of options at his disposal for the second half of the season.
This will ultimately strengthen BVB's overall depth, which could be valuable considering the fact that the German giants will have some key matches in the Europa League next year.
#2 The form of key players
Several key players failing to deliver is what mainly led to the awful form of Borussia Dortmund earlier in the season. The likes of Sokratis, Marcel Schmelzer, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang all failed to impress under Peter Bosz.
Although it's too early to make a final judgement call, all of these key players have looked significantly better under new coach Peter Stoger. Sokratis was rock solid in defence while Marcel Schmelzer was perhaps the best BVB defender in the game against Mainz.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang also picked up a crucial assist and was very good overall. Even Shinji Kagawa and Jeremy Toljan looked particularly impressive on that night, which wasn't the case with the Dutchman in charge.
The fact that all of these important are finally players to their expectations only bodes well for the club as they seek redemption in the second half of the season.
#1 The return of Julian Weigl
Julian Weigl could play an invaluable role for the club for the remainder of the season. The young German midfielder was hugely undermined by previous head coach Peter Bosz. The Dutchman wanted Weigl to provide more attacking creativity. However, Weigl ignored his advice and instead, continued playing his own natural game, which ultimately provoked his substitution in a number of matches this season.
Stoger, however, is expected to allow Julian Weigl to exhibit his natural game in midfield. The 21-year-old is a vital cog for Borussia Dortmund in the centre of the park, and his presence could bring back the lost stability and tempo in the Dortmund midfield.
His impressive performance against Mainz already hinted that he could be a real success under Stoger. It will be interesting to see how he performs in the second half of the season.
