Following their 0-1 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund’s players and officials are preoccupied with the isolated whistles directed at Nico Schlotterbeck. While their solidarity in defending Schlotterbeck is commendable, it overshadows a more serious issue: the team’s rapidly declining intensity, which is reaching alarming levels.
The players and management of Borussia Dortmund deserve credit for publicly backing Nico Schlotterbeck after the 0-1 loss to Bayer Leverkusen and criticizing the isolated whistles he received during team announcements and the match. This unified front was expected and, frankly, necessary to avoid further disruption.
However, while presenting a united front and shielding Schlotterbeck from criticism is one thing, the strong condemnation of the whistles – which were, as mentioned, isolated and understandable from the fans’ perspective – seemed excessive. Phrases like «that’s not how it’s done,» according to CEO Carsten Cramer, and «an outrage,» stated by defender Waldemar Anton, not only felt disproportionate but also distracted from more critical talking points from the afternoon.
Dortmund appears to be letting their season fizzle out. Despite being a strong second-place team in the Bundesliga, with only two losses against the dominant Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen (whom they also lost to in the cup), the aesthetic quality of their play has been largely unremarkable for much of the season. Yet, the results and, crucially, the often-cited mentality, have been present. The loss to Bayer Leverkusen, a team fighting for Champions League qualification, does not change this fundamental point. It’s also understandable that, with their Bundesliga standing effectively cemented for weeks – Bayern is too far ahead, and Leipzig and Stuttgart are also out of reach – the team might not be pushing as hard to avoid defeat.
Nevertheless, there’s a significant caveat: the team’s intensity is showing a worrying downward trend.
VfB Stuttgart and HSV Matches Saved by Substitutes
Last week in Stuttgart, until deep into stoppage time, BVB showed no inclination to do more than secure a 0-0 draw. The team seemed almost unwilling to win. The flattering 2-0 victory at the end was solely down to the substitutes Karim Adeyemi, Julian Brandt, and Fabio Silva, who were instrumental in both goals as creators and finishers, fighting for more playing time. Their efforts were successful; Brandt and Fabio Silva started against Leverkusen, and Brandt was among Dortmund’s better performers in the 0-1 loss.
Even the dramatic 3-2 comeback against Hamburger SV before the international break, after being down 0-2, was less a result of a collective performance increase and more due to Niko Kovac’s substitutions, Ramy Bensebaini and Fabio Silva.
Against Leverkusen, Dortmund started promisingly, even showing a degree of dominance, though without creating significant chances in the box. However, after conceding an unlucky goal, there was no sign of a resurgence in the second half; quite the opposite. The subsequent quiet in the stadium, due to both fan groups pausing their support because of a medical emergency in the stands, seemed to occupy the minds of most BVB players more than Schlotterbeck had been by the whistles against him. Incidentally, Schlotterbeck himself delivered a decent performance.
BVB: Is This Truly a Niko Kovac Team?
«The German championship is not yet decided,» Niko Kovac stated on Thursday, emphasizing that mathematically, much is still possible – both positively and negatively. Kovac embodies realism, the antithesis of a dreamer. He certainly wasn’t suggesting they could somehow catch Bayern under certain circumstances. Nor was he implying that Champions League qualification, which BVB has not yet mathematically secured after the Leverkusen loss, could still be in jeopardy.
Kovac’s intention was precisely to prevent the dip in intensity his players exhibited against Leverkusen, and previously against VfB Stuttgart and Hamburger SV.
One of Niko Kovac’s greatest achievements at BVB this season has been the avoidance of the kind of debilitating and unproductive «mentality debates» that have plagued the club in the past. While their build-up play was often devoid of ideas, Kovac instilled a never-give-up attitude, teaching the team to rally and overcome adversity. This appears to have waned slightly, even though the results were positive until recently. A further slip-up against TSG Hoffenheim next Saturday could hand Bayern an early league title.
While it might not fundamentally matter to Dortmund when Bayern celebrates their next title, if this BVB truly wants to be a Niko Kovac team, they should fight for a win in Hoffenheim with the same passion they displayed on Saturday when admonishing fans for a few whistles against Nico Schlotterbeck.