Friday , March 29 2024

Will Borussia Dortmund ever break Bayern Munich’s dominance?

Ask any fan of European football and they’ll tell you that Bayern Munich are one of the best teams on the continent, not least in their domestic Bundesliga. For what seems like years now, the German league has been a majorly one-horse race with a side featuring greats such as Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller in Bayern winning absolutely everything. However, with some of those names approaching the end of their careers, is it time Borussia Dortmund got back on top?

It’s important to note that Dortmund were a competitive side under now manager of Liverpool Jurgen Klopp, who, from as soon as he entered the doors of the Signal Iduna Park, thrust the idea of strong mentality and club culture to the forefront of his methods. As a result, even with one of the youngest squads in the division, Klopp led his Dortmund side to two consecutive Bundesliga titles in his time there.

This success was supplemented by several domestic cup wins, including a DFB Pokal in 2011/12 and two consecutive Supercups in 2013 and 2014. The highest point of Klopp’s early successes with Dortmund was a Champions League final in the 2012/13 season at Wembley, where they ran out as 2-1 losers to Bayern thanks to a late goal from flying winger Arjen Robben.

From 2014 onwards, things went quiet for Klopp and Dortmund, as Bayern continued their dominance, adding several trophies to their cabinet. Even with the inclusion of key players such as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mario Gotze and Marco Reus, Dortmund couldn’t match the firepower of their Munich rivals. These issues would be compounded following Klopp’s departure for Liverpool; Dortmund appeared lost for the first time in several years.

The appointment of Thomas Tuchel led to a fire sale of key first-team players such as Mats Hummels and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, with them being replaced by the likes of Ousmane Dembele and Marc Bartra. It is arguably the loss of such key players and dressing room leaders that forced Dortmund further away from Bayern, especially given the compounded loss of a winning mentality since Klopp moved on.

However, with regards to the present day, Dortmund look to be in the best place they can to try and challenge their rivals. The recruitment of players such as Jadon Sancho and Norwegian starlet Erling Haaland certainly looks to have set them up for the next few years and their continued investment in youth with signings such as wonderkid Jude Bellingham proves that a core part of their club culture still remains.

With the right mix of experience provided by veterans such as Marco Reus and a returning Mats Hummels and youthful spirit from the aforementioned Sancho and Haaland, they are definitely in good stead to challenge for the title un future seasons. The 2019/20 season saw them claim second in the division following a string of results that culminated in a demolition of close rivals RB Leipzig, thanks to a brace from Erling Haaland.

Of course, a good barometer of deciding who is likely to win divisions such as the Bundesliga, be it Dortmund or otherwise, is by utilising football betting sites. The rise of the internet has seen online betting take on increased importance especially given its convenient nature. It’s also become a popular activity online which has prompted the rise of comparison sites such as this one, which goes through different options here when it comes to deciding which provider to use. Now, to show how close – or otherwise – Dortmund may be, 888sport, which is listed as a popular and reputable worldwide bookmaker operating in India, has the Yellow Submarine at 9/1 to win the title this season – this shows that there is still work to be done when it comes to getting results.

If the current trajectory of Dortmund relating to player recruitment are to be believed, however, then there’s no reason why they can’t finally supersede Bayern as the best team in Germany. Of course, this isn’t a one-sided affair and also depends on Bayern Munich stagnating for a period of time, possibly following the retirement of key players such as Lewandowski, Boateng and Muller, amongst others. If Dortmund can capitalise on the holes in the dressing room when the time comes, then they might just pip die Bayern to the post. That said, that would be if Leverkusen and Leipzig don’t get there first.

About Arunava Chaudhuri

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