Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Guendogan would be one of the key players for his side in their game against Galatasaray today. (AFP)
While the Bundesliga has not gone to plan for Borussia Dortmund this season, they sit proudly at the top of Champions League Group D and tonight at Galatasaray, will hope more European action can spark a change to their domestic fortune.
Star striker Robert Lewandowski may have left for Bayern Munich in summer but the arrival of players like Ciro Immobile, Shinji Kagawa, Adrian Ramos and Matthias Ginter suggested squad was stronger than in the previous campaign.
But a miserly total of seven points from eight league games has left Dortmund closer to the Bundesliga relegation zone than the Champions League spots. And a challenge to Bayern Munich, 13 points up the table, already seems unrealistic.
“I get the impression that we are a bit short all over the place,” sporting director Michael Zorc said after the latest defeat, 2-1 at Cologne on Saturday. “We lack composure up front and at the back we keep making presents of goals. So called leaders are making huge mistakes. Up front we lack penetration.”
The bright spot in the autumn gloom is the Champions League. Arsenal, Galatasaray and Anderlecht were not the toughest of opponents but certainly command respect. So far in the competition Dortmund have played two, won two, scored five and not conceded.
Barring a collapse, Dortmund should secure at least second in the group to guarantee progression to the knock-out stages. But the threat of the domestic malaise infecting the European form means it is impossible to relax.
“We need to fight our way from the bottom as a team. I have been through it before enough times, and it will not be easy,” said Marco Reus.
“We need to keep working hard, and with that work I am sure that we shall soon be on the road to success again.”
Injuries have certainly played their part in hampering the campaign with Reus, along with Ilkay Guendogan and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, just returning to full fitness.
Cutting out the errors against Galatasaray should lift Dortmund ahead of their home match with Hanover on Saturday. But a loss in Istanbul could mean the first blip in Klopp’s six-year reign is in danger of becoming a crisis.
Tonight’s Fixtures
Atletico Madrid v Malmo
Olympiakos v Juventus
Liverpool v Real Madrid
Ludogorets Razgrad v Basel
Bayer Leverkusen v Zenit
Monaco v Benfica
Anderlecht v Arsenal
Galatasaray v Dortmund
(All matches start
21.45 Qatar Time)
