Kovac before the game against Köln: “Be present from the very first minute” | OneFootball

Game three of seven in this block between the international breaks in October and November is upon us. 1. FC Köln's visit to Strobelallee on Saturday will be BVB's only home game between mid-October and early November. The last two games on the calendar were away games: Borussia responded well to last week's defeat in Munich (2-1) – their first Bundesliga loss in 14 games and seven months – by winning 4-2 away to FC Copenhagen in the Champions League during the week.

"I think the team have come a long way. Of course, there's always a bit of inconsistency when we look at the first two halves in Munich or Copenhagen. We didn't play the way we're capable of. But in the second halves we proved that we can do better,” said BVB coach Niko Kovac, who is pleased “that the team are always able to respond to the impulses we give them at half-time. The team have the physicality to play through to the end in the second half. Every single player who plays here can do that, and that gives me peace of mind.”

“Everyone has come back well”

The coach already had a full bench at his disposal on Tuesday so that he could make plentiful substitutions, and after returning from Denmark, Kovac is confident that he will be able to draw on all his resources against Köln as well. Serhou Guirassy and Yan Couto returned from the north with colds and only completed parts of Friday's training session, but “I don't think that will be a problem for tomorrow,” said Kovac, who also had good news to report about long-term absentees Emre Can and Julien Duranville: “They are still only partially integrated, but they are making progress.” While the professionals were in Copenhagen, the captain took part in the U23 training session, “which is also important for him to get some time on the ball,” said Kovac

The visit of the Geißböcke (Billy Goats) to Dortmund will be a match-up of the sixth-placed team with the fourth-placed hosts (match facts). Only three points separate the two clubs. After seven games, the team from Cologne have already amassed 11 points, which is as many as they had after the entire first half of the 2023/24 season in which they ultimately suffered relegation. With their current record, the team are the best newly promoted side since Hannover 96 in the 2017/18 season – and that's with a challenging start to the season: their trip to Dortmund on Matchday 8 will be their fifth away game of the season.

They have picked up seven points from their four away games so far. “An opponent who have started very well, who are on a wave of euphoria and who will certainly have a lot of great fans in the stadium. A team that play vertically, that get the ball forward quickly and get a lot of players in the box,” Kovac observed , going on to add: “That means we have to try to keep the opponent as far away from the goal as possible. We also have to play our game.”

Since 8 March (a 2-1 loss at the hands of Augsburg), BVB have been unbeaten at home and celebrated eight wins in a row across all competitions before sharing the points at home for the first time this season in a 1-1 draw with Leipzig at the beginning of the month. On Saturday, Borussia want to get back to winning ways . Kovac stressed: “Tomorrow will be another tough battle for us. We have to be present from the first minute. We need these three points. We have to give everything and every single one of us has to go beyond our limits.”

Christina Reinke