BVB new signing Emre Can is not satisfied with Dortmund’s defensive work. Image: imago images / Kirchner-Media
–
Emre Can is right: Statistics reveal BVB’s problems
If Borussia Dortmund had to establish a new advertising slogan, they could use ProSieben: “We love to entertain you!” Because when BVB plays, a lot of goals are scored, Unfortunately for our own supporters on both sides.
In the past five games, the black and yellow have scored an incredible 20 goals – but conquered a massive eleven goals. No wonder that Borussia is facing a small crisis again.
Head coach Lucien Favre in particular is once again criticized. If you add the 3: 3 against RB Leipzig and the 1: 2 loss in Hoffenheim before the winter break, then BVB has won only three games from the past seven competitive matches. That is too little for the self-proclaimed title contender. The fact that the black and yellow are still in third place, just four points behind leaders Bayern Munich, is mainly due to the stumbling competitors in the title race.
However, the third place in the table and the intoxicating Dortmund storm runs with the accurate shooting stars Erling Haaland, Jadon Sancho or Giovanni Reyna cannot hide the fact that Lucien Favre still failed to consolidate the Dortmund defense in his second season.
Statistics support criticism from Emre Can
Emre Can, who came from Juventus in winter to help fill these defense holes, put his finger deep into the wound after the 3-4 loss to Leverkusen: “If you take the lead, you have to be dirtier! Sometimes playing a foul, better defending. I mean the entire team, from front to back. We have to learn that. First you have to defend well!”
BVB newcomer Emre Can already has a pretty good insight into the problem world of Dortmund after a few days in the Ruhrpott. In addition to the 32 goals conceded in the league – as many as at Union Union Berlin – his statements are supported by numerous statistics.
Offensive, Emre Can already delighted his teammate Jadon Sancho (left): In Leverkusen, the newcomer scored a dream goal from over 30 meters. Image: Martin Meissner / ap
–
Can and teammate Mats Hummels criticized too much passivity and too little aggressiveness after the defeat against Bayer. Ironically the fairness statistics of the Bundesliga reveal the Dortmund dilemma: The Westphalians have committed only 182 fouls so far this season – no team fouled less. Passive play is also reflected in the yellow card statistics. BVB have only received 19 yellow cards this season – fewer than no team. For comparison: FC Bayern saw yellow twice as often.
If you think that these statistics only show that BVB is a fair team, we recommend another statistic: In the duels won, Borussia only gets a total of 2075 – only three teams in the Bundesliga are worse, With only 314 headed duels won, the Westphalia are even bottom of the league.
Zorc does not want to ask players to foul
Sports director Michael Zorc knows the statistics: “We are the fairest team in the league, but there are no points for that,” Zorc said on Wednesday at the press conference before the Bundesliga match against Eintracht Frankfurt. The BVB sports director does not want to openly ask the team to go harder: “In some cases this is the means of choice, but we do not ask our players to play foul. It is about protecting every player, to raise awareness, to protect their own goal”said Zorc. He emphasized again: “The problem is that we get too many goals conceded. We often lose our work wages.”
The defensive dilemma, however, has to do not only with the passive BVB players without “goal protector instinct”, but also with the increasingly helpless coach Lucien Favre, who also cannot tactically stabilize the BVB defense. Favre’s words on Wednesday should remind some fans of perseverance slogans: “We have scored too many goals. We know that. We have to work on it. The only solution I see: work, work, work, “said the BVB coach before the Friday game against Eintracht.
He has not yet revealed whether Favre wants to play on the defensive with a chain of three or four: “We will see and talk about it. The decision has not yet been made. We have to see who is there in training tomorrow. Both systems are possible, we can switch immediately. “
Stormy teams are waiting for BVB
The next two games could be uncomfortable for Favre: The shaky BVB defense must prove itself against stormy opponents. On Friday, BVB will play against revitalized Frankfurt. The team from Adi Hütter had a long streak of seven games without a victory in the league after the 5: 1 victory against FC Bayern and the resulting loss of Bayern coach Niko Kovac in early November. It’s been going again since the winter break: the SBU has not yet lost a game in the second half of the season, scoring three goals against Leipzig and five against Augsburg.
Dortmund problem children: The defenders Mats Hummels, Dan-Axel Zagadou and Manuel Akanji (from left to right) allow too many goals. Image: imago images / Laci Perenyi
–
After the game in the league, BVB has to play in the Champions League without the injured captain Marco Reus of all things against one of the strongest offensives in the world: On Tuesday, France’s elite club Paris St.-Germain will be a guest at the Westfalenstadion. The French around Kylian Mbappé, Neymar, Mauro Icardi and Angel di Maria scored 17 goals in the group stage of the premier class alone, and 63 in the league.
The former BVB coach and today’s PSG coach Thomas Tuchel knows about Dortmund’s defense concerns – but warned at the weekend about the BVB offensive. When asked if it gave him hope that BVB would concede so many goals, Tuchel responded with a laugh: “But I am also sure that they are always able to score six to seven goals,” said Tuchel: “It is a super strong team. It will be a very difficult task.”
However, BVB only scored eight goals in the group phase – and conceded exactly as many. The upcoming games by Haaland, Sancho and Co. should at least please the neutral viewers according to the slogan “We love to entertain you”. It remains questionable whether the BVB fans will be satisfied. For coach legend Jupp Heynckes already preached: “The storm wins games, the defense championships”.
(Bn)
