Enlarge image
Coach Marco Rose (right) sticks to his risky tactics
Photo: INA FASSBENDER / AFP
Borussia Dortmund is nine points behind FC Bayern again.
Even greater, namely ten points, is BVB's lead over fifth place in the table, which prevents entry into the Champions League, which is so urgent.
The Bundesliga currently forgives the Dortmunders a lot, especially their greatest weakness.
After the 2: 5 (1: 3) against Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday, there are now 36 goals against after 21 games.
Only four teams in the league have conceded more goals, including the two in the direct relegation zone.
A comparison with the other top divisions in Europe shows that runners-up in France, Olympique Marseille, scored an average of 0.87 goals.
In England it is 0.86 for Liverpool FC, in Spain for Sevilla FC 0.7, for SSC Napoli in Italy only 0.67.
At BVB, the calculation is 1.71.
The numbers point to a structural problem and call for change.
But coach Marco Rose seems to want to stick to his tactics.
In any case, the statements after the bitter defeat did not allow for any other interpretation.
Improvement rather than change is the lineage of Rose.
The question is whether improvement with change would not be more likely.
Rose's tactics are based on disturbing the opponent early and thus far up front, moving up with many players when in possession of the ball, in order to counteract quantitatively in the attacking third.
This tactic comes with a calculated risk, which increases against a team like Leverkusen, who not only have very fast wingers like Karim Bellarabi and Moussa Diaby, but also – also risky – let them lurk for counterattack opportunities instead of taking them to the back lines to force.
"We had identified exactly this switching game as their absolute weapon," said the Dortmund coach.
He therefore asked his team to be “good at counterpressing and good at the rest of the defense”.
No thought of the remaining defense
What his players then rode in the 20th minute, when the score was 1:1 not to waste any thought on the remaining defense, i.e. protection against counterattacks, should have kept Rose busy long after the game.
Both full-backs in the 4-3-3 system, as well as the central midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud and the two "eights" in Jude Bellingham and Julian Brandt, were not ready to defend when the ball was lost in the opponent's penalty area, i.e. in an area where ball control is very difficult.
"Exactly the things that we've been talking about all week" were the problem, goalkeeper Gregor Kobel was annoyed at "Dazn", and Marco Rose counted "four goals" for Leverkusen.
However, he is still convinced of his principle of counter-pressing and high defending because: “In certain games we have consistently done well.”
Professionals and profile do not go together
However, the process is lengthy and difficult, as many players vary greatly in their performance and some of their profiles only fit Rose's principles to a limited extent.
In the case of the full-backs Raphaël Guerreiro and Thomas Meunier, it is mainly speed deficits.
With Guerreiro there is also the fact that he neglects the defensive too much for often worth seeing and decisive actions on the offensive.
Brandt often switches too late or too quickly if the opponent counters.
Good actions and many scorer points in the past few weeks covered these weaknesses.
With Manuel Akanji only one central defender is in good form this season.
Chair backs on the defensive necessary
The speculation about the future of striker Erling Haaland, who was missing against Leverkusen because of a torn muscle fiber, has been covering up the question of personal details on the defensive for months.
Akanji's contract runs until the summer of 2023, as do Mats Hummels and Guerreiro.
Dan-Axel Zagadou, frequently injured and making a hair-raising mistake against Leverkusen, is only tied to BVB until June 30, but he is said to be offered a new contract.
Meunier and Nico Schulz have contracts that are valid until 2024, but the question arises as to whether they meet the requirements of a club that wants to be a serious competitor to FC Bayern.
Michael Zorc, who will only be sporting director at Borussia until the summer, hands over a difficult task to his successor Sebastian Kehl.
If Rose doesn't want to change his direction, the squad would have to be changed significantly.
In the long run, the Bundesliga will not forgive such a flood of goals.