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Borussia Dortmund. An institution that has been a revolution in recent years. A club that simply has been stunning and has notified the footballing world with their breathless and never getting tired style of play. Standing tall as a symbol of the team game boasting of home grown talent along with non-prolific signings turned stars, their system of operation is at the opposite end of the spectrum, when compared to the big money houses. Being a true representative of the underdog image, they have captured the hearts of many neutrals all over the globe.
But two successful domestic seasons followed by an all German Champions league final have finally caught up with them. They now attract attention from all the big money clubs from across the world, who certainly value the talent and the fulfilling set of future prospects Dortmund possess. With the departure of a couple of key players in a span of just over a year, Die Borussen face a crisis in maintaining their consistency and their quality. So does that mean while being on the verge of becoming a giant among Europe’s finest clubs their vision to do so ends only after a small duration?
Not long ago the club’s financial fortunes declined steadily for a number of years and they were driven to the brink of bankruptcy in 2005. The Westfalenstadion had to be renamed the Signal Iduna Park in 2006 to reduce the burden of debts. Hans Joachim Watzke , a German entrepreneur entered the scene and together with club president Reinhard Raubell and CFO Thomas Tress, he saved the Westphalian club by restructuring their debts before they hit bankruptcy.
Watzke was able to reduce the backlog in the following years. But on the pitch a miserable start to the 2006-07 season saw Dortmund face an unexpected relegation battle. The club officials went through three different coaches before finally appointing Thomas Doll in 2007. The solution wasn’t still knocking on the door as Dortmund lost to many smaller clubs in the league next season combined with a loss in the finals of the DFB Pokal against domestic rivals Bayern Munich.
The tide turned when Jurgen Klopp was appointed in May 2008. Having been a player himself, the man injected renewed passion in the squad which proved fruitful in the first season itself as Dortmund came out victorious in the DFB Super Cup final against Bayern Munich. Further success followed in the 2009-10 season as they sealed a Uefa Europa league spot with a fifth place finish in the Bundesliga.
The self-proclaimed fan of heavy metal music was quite hardcore in his approach towards the game.Fielding a young set of exuberant and vibrant players entering the 2010-11 season, Klopp spearheaded his boys into contention for the league. With a convincing seven point lead over 2nd place Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund won the Bundesliga which automatically earned them a Champions league group stage spot for the next season.
Dortmund as Bundesliga Champions for the 2nd consecutive time in 2011-2012.
The 2011-12 season was rounded off in style as they clinched their consecutive title with a record breaking tally of 81 points. They also did the double for the first time ever by beating rivals Bayern Munich 5-2 in the finals of the DFB Pokal. Voted as the team of the year, the team consisted of upcoming talents like Mario Gotze, Ilkay Gundogan, Shinji Kagawa, and Robert Lewandowski.
With two successful domestic seasons and yet another Champions league appearance, they were the surprise package of the season in Europe. Offers started to flow in as European giants started moving for Dortmund players in the transfer market. The first punch came in when Dortmund’s highly rated attacking play-maker Kagawa was offloaded to Manchester United. His departure was a blow to them, but that didn’t alter their confidence.
Shinji Kagawa signs for Manchester United
Dortmund announced themselves properly on the European stage in the 2012-13 season ,as they topped a group also containing Real Madrid and Manchester City. With a work ethic and determination to get people behind the ball while defending and countering with lightning speed while on the attack, Dortmund were too hot to handle for their opponents. They faced familiar foes Real Madrid in the semifinals.
The result made the world sit up and take notice as Dortmund thrashed Los Blancos 4-1 at the Signal Iduna Park with Robert Lewandowski registering four times on the score sheet. They managed to hold on to their lead in the 2nd leg and qualified for the finals on aggregate. The same night however, Dortmund were dealt a major blow which would go on to impact their performances in both the Champions league finals and the future seasons.
The duo that wasn’t meant to be. Mario Gotze and Marco Reus.
Mario Gotze was central to Dortmund’s style of play after the departure of Shinji Kagawa. Although not being his direct replacement, the club did adapt according to the young and promising starlet’s talents. He formed a formidable partnership with Marco Reus who was bought back from Monchengladbach (he was sold to them after coming up through the ranks of the Dortmund academy). The duo led the way for a successful season in Europe. Just after they sealed their final spot for the grandest night of European football, Bayern Munich announced his signing officially.
The record transfer fee was disclosed and the news broke the hearts of the Dortmund fans along with a lot of neutrals around the globe. This caused the players a lot of discomfort, and Bayern went on to win the closely contested final to lift the Champions league (Gotze did not play as he was injured)
As a replacement, Klopp brought in Armenian superstar Henrikh Mkhitaryan from Shakhtar . He immediately adapted to Klopp’s style of play and lived up to the expectations supporting their star striker Lewandowski ably. However, just like in Gotze’s case, Lewandowski was at the centre of a huge free-for-all among many big clubs across Europe, and he himself declared his interest in playing for Bayern. All the speculation was put to bed earlier this year, as it was announced that he would join Bayern in the summer.
The lack of depth in the squad has been exposed following a spate of injuries this season. They lost their first choice defence of Nevan Subotic and Matt Hummels with the former sidelined for the rest of the season following a ligament tear. Lucas Piszczek returned from a long hiatus only to see his right flank partner Jakub Blaszczykowski ruled out for the rest of the season with a cruciate ligament tear. Ilkay Gundogan’s back problems still continue and concerns whether he would have to retire early have arisen. Marcel Schmelzer is the recent addition to the treatment table with the left back facing a four week lay off.
Neven Subotic out with a season ending injury
So with players departing and injury problems increasing, the future of Borussia Dortmund’s consistency is in question. The once promising super power are now merely a shadow of their previous dominating selves. As things stand, being third in the league and a position in the Champions league quarters is pretty good but the instability of their recent performances, especially after setting high standards in Europe, have raised a lot of questions.
While Ancelotti’s Madrid awaits them at the Bernabeu on the 2nd of April , will Klopp’s boys crash out with their half strength squad? Or will they indeed deliver a performance to stun Real Madrid once again and take something away to their home ground to capitalize on?
