The Daily Bee (January 20th, 2021): Edin Terzic Criticizes Borussia Dortmund’s Mentality

Good morning, Fear the Wall.

Borussia Dortmund suffered another frustrating defeat, this time at the hands of Peter Bosz’s Bayer Leverkusen. BVB have now dropped points in consecutive games, and it could not have come at a worse time. After Dortmund beat RB Leipzig, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to begin building momentum. Instead, BVB dropped points to the worst team in the league and then were outfought again against Leverkusen. Courtesy of Ruhr Nachrichten, here are some reactions from Borussia Dortmund’s players:

Julian Brandt, who scored his first goal of the season against his former side, expressed frustration with Dortmund’s performance as well as relief that the first half of the season has come to a close:

We had no intensity in the game, and Leverkusen had too much time and too much possession. The first half of the season is over and we are not satisfied with the number of points. On Friday we have to present ourselves differently and maybe start a series. A lot can still happen in 17 games, but we’re a long way from the title.

The captain Marco Reus was also disappointed, and stressed the need to bounce back on Friday against Borussia Monchengladbach:

We gave Leverkusen lots of space... after the 1-1 draw we were very, very much on the trigger. The door was open, but we didn’t go through... We have to score points on Friday, otherwise we will completely lose touch - we have to prevent that.

The manager Edin Terzic had some interesting words regarding Borussia Dortmund’s mentality. According to him, while BVB started well, once they conceded an early goal, the players’ heads went down. Even when Dortmund came out stronger in the second half, and even equalized, once Leverkusen got back in the game it was all over.

We got into the game really well. Then we conceded the goal and it was a break in the game. We didn’t agree with the body language - the heads went down. We wanted to change that in the second half. We succeeded and we scored the goal. Then we conceded another stupid goal - after that, not much was possible,

It’s interesting that Terzic is pointing this out. Many have criticized Borussia Dortmund’s players for perceived fragility, and Terzic seems to accept this position as well. It will be interesting to see whether he’s able to motivate the players as the season moves forward.

The Daily Buzz

Do Borussia Dortmund still have a chance at the title or is it all over?