Supporting Borussia Dortmund must feel weird at times. On the one hand, you are the second winningest club in one of Europe’s biggest and most prestigious leagues. On the other, you have had your heart broken to a million pieces more times than not.
But when you pray for rain, you have to deal with the mud. For a club like Die Schwarzgelben, the rain comes every once in a while, yet the mud seems to stick around forever.
With the hiring of one of their former players Nuri Sahin, perhaps a change of fate for the Bundesliga runner-up kings is due.
The Black and Yellows must dust themselves off
Last year was a roller-coaster of a season for the former SBOTOP Bundesliga kings. They shocked everyone by rising to the top of the Champions League, only to be bested by Real Madrid in the final.
It was a run of epic proportions. Edin Terzic’s side were put in a group of death where, on paper, they shouldn’t be able to make it past the group stages. Luckily, the game is played on the pitch and not on paper.
Against Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan, and Newcastle United, Terzic’s men rose to the top. They disposed of PSV in the Round of 16 and managed to come back from a first-leg defeat to eliminate Atletico Madrid.
In the semi-final, Niclas Fullkrug and Mats Hummels scored in each leg to shock French champions PSG and head to the Champions League final for the first time since Jurgen Klopp’s era.
Had Dortmund’s season started and ended in Europe, it would’ve been a success. Unfortunately, they had to play in Germany for the most part. And that’s where it got ugly.
After winning the most games in the 2022/23 season and basically having the trophy in their back pockets, Die Borussen regressed mightily and could only manage to finish fifth. In the DFB-Pokal—which they won in 2021—the five-time winners were knocked out by Stuttgart.
Fans and critics were heavy on Terzic, with the most notable comments mentioning his style as being too passive and relying on sitting at the back for too long.
Young stars Karim Adeyemi and Youssoufa Moukoko also had their developments hampered in what should’ve and could’ve been a break-out season.
But, alas, all of this is in the past.
Nuri Sahin is now here in an attempt to rectify the mistakes of yesteryear. And with longtime club servants, Marco Reus and Mats Hummels announcing their departures, the stage is now set for a grand rebuilding.
Sahin promises to attack
Xabi Alonso upsetting the Bundesliga 2024 odds by dominating the league with such little managerial experience is a beautiful one to sell. So, Dortmund may be banking on the hope that one of their own could very well do the same.
According to Bundesliga 2024 news, the 35-year-old former Real Madrid and Turkey international has made it clear that he wants to push the ball forward and have more control over the game. If Dortmund will have any chance of returning as a top contender, then scoring must be a top priority.
Last season, they managed to score 68 goals in the league—considerably fewer than any of the top four teams.
Donyell Malen was their leading scorer with 13 goals, followed by Niclas Fullkrug and Julian Brandt with 12 and seven goals, respectively. As of writing, Die Borussen had already secured the services of Serhou Guirassy and Waldemar Anton—both of whom were from rivals Stuttgart.
Guirassy scored 28 goals in 28 games for Die Schwaben, whilst Anton was Stuttgart’s captain and one of the country’s most reliable centre-backs.
Brighton’s Pascal Gross and Fenerbahce’s Ferdi Kadioglu were also being looked at.
Gross, one of Brighton’s most tenured players, is a Swiss Army knife. Kadioglu, meanwhile, is one of Turkey’s best left-backs and is a promising player.
Loanees Jadon Sancho and Ian Maatsen have also finished their time at Signal Iduna Park, so it is imperative for Sahin to find replacements.
A breath of fresh air is certainly needed in Dortmund. Despite what they have achieved in recent years, it’s still a far cry from their ultimate goal.
With Nuri Sahin in charge, the Yellow Wall see one of their own as the captain of the ship.
It is in his hands to steer them in the right direction—to the top. After all, who wants to be runners-up forever?
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