5 reasons Dortmund will qualify for Europe | OneFootball

5 reasons Borussia Dortmund will still qualify for Europe

Borussia Dortmund have climbed from 10th to fifth and could yet finish in the top four. bundesliga.com explains why BVB will secure European football for the new campaign on the last day of the season...

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1) One focus, one objective

Dortmund were desperately unlucky to go out of the UEFA Champions League in mid-April, beating Barcelona 3-1 at home but ultimately falling at the quarter-final stage 5-3 on aggregate.

Did they wallow? Not a bit. Four consecutive wins over Borussia Mönchengladbach, Hoffenheim, Wolfsburg and Bayer Leverkusen have lifted them up to their highest standing since Matchday 13 whilst extending their unbeaten run to seven. Champions League qualification is very much a possibility, too, with Freiburg just one point above in fourth.

2) Goal-rassy and the gang

Goals win games, so it’s just as well Dortmund have those in abundance. Only Bayern Munich (95) and Leverkusen (70) have outscored BVB this season. The Black-Yellows are even higher up the ladder for Rückrunde goals, with 36 to Bayern’s 41.

Serhou Guirassy’s the main man in the final third, the summer 2024 signing producing 33 goals in all competitions, including 20 in the Bundesliga. Maximilian Beier has found his feet with five goal contributions in his last six Bundesliga appearances, while Karim Adeyemi's goal and assist againt Leverkusen was the latest example of his return to favour and form since Niko Kovač took charge at the end of January.

3) The Kovač factor

Dortmund's top brass will be beginning to feel fully vindicated for bringing in Kovač in the wake of Nuri Şahin's dismissal. BVB have taken 26 points from a possible 39 under the Croatian, who previously won the DFB Cup with Frankfurt and a domestic double at the Bayern helm.

Recent performances, in particular, highlight how Kovač's ideas are taking hold. Dortmund responded to defeat to Leipzig by beating the two clubs directly above them in the current standings - Mainz and Freiburg - before holding leaders Bayern to a 2-2 draw and displaying some of the swagger of Dortmund teams of old in the wins over Gladbach, Hoffenheim, Wolfsburg and Leverkusen.

4) History on their side

As well as Kovač's top-level experience, the Ruhr club have some serious continental pedigree in their favour. BVB haven't missed out UEFA competition since 2009/10, notably qualifying for the Champions League for the last 10 seasons in a row. With European rookies Freiburg and Mainz their closest top-six rivals and seventh-placed Leipzig needing results to go in their favour and to overturn a huge goal-difference deficit, that has to be a huge psychological advantage down the back straight.

5) Favourable fixtures

Dortmund also have a pretty favourable final run-in as they face already-relegated Holstein Kiel at home on the final day. Kiel's relegation was confirmed following their defeat at the hands of Freiburg on Matchday 33. By contrast, Freiburg host third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt, who themselves haven't yet secured Champions League qualification. At any rate, Kovač will be instilling into his team that it's still all to play for ahead of the final day and, whilst Kiel have nothing but pride to play for, it's a potentially season-defining final matchday for BVB.

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