Ahead of the season finale in Bremen: “We can be happy with what we have achieved”

Ahead of the season finale in Bremen: “We can be happy with what we have achieved”

The scenarioWith their 3-2 win over Eintracht Frankfurt last weekend, Borussia Dortmund secured second place and their tenth consecutive runner-up finish. In the first half of the season, BVB earned 36 points; a win in Bremen would see them reach 37 in the second half of the season. The Black & Yellows currently have a total of 70 points. “We're taking the game very seriously. 70 points sounds good, 73 sounds even better. I could live with 71, but we're going there to win,” said BVB coach Niko Kovac. “If someone had told us we'd finish the season as a safe second-place team with 70 points – perhaps even 73 – I would have signed up for that straight away and said it would be a fantastic achievement. We can be very happy with what we’ve accomplished in the Bundesliga,” Kovac concluded. 73 points would be their best tally in seven years.

Personnel situationFelix Nmecha, Karim Adeyemi, and Niklas Süle had already returned to the squad for the match against Frankfurt. Marcel Sabitzer and Julian Brandt did not participate in the public training session during the week due to individual training schedules, but have since rejoined the team. Niko Kovac only has to do without captain Emre Can and Ramy Bensebaini.

The opponentAlthough Werder Bremen may have lost their last two matches against Hoffenheim and Augsburg, thanks to results in other matches, they secured their Bundesliga survival last weekend. Currently sitting in 15th place with 32 points, the team would finish the season with 32 points, marking their third-worst Bundesliga campaign in history.

What's next?

After the impressive finish to last season, when BVB secured fourth place and Champions League qualification on the final matchday, the action continued in the summer with the FIFA Club World Cup in the USA. “The break was very short,” Kovac reflects – and ahead: “After tomorrow’s game, we’ll all be going on holiday. We’ll take a break and unwind, because not only we, the coaches and staff are under mental stress, but the physical stress on the players is also considerable.” The players are allowed a week off, followed by a seven-week programme prescribed by the coaches. “We’ll use this time wisely so that we can start pre-season training in a completely different way than if we did nothing.”

In mid-July, players, coaches, and staff will reunite in Dortmund. Only the players who will be preparing with their national teams for the World Cup starting on 11 June, will be given a break upon their return from the tournament, “but will then rejoin the team in time to have enough preparation time for the new Bundesliga season”.