Tuchel at a winter training session in Dortmund.
RENEWAL
The morning brings renewal
And the stream of sunlight
Washes away
The tears of yesternight
-Anonymous
It seems one half of the season has already come and gone, and we are now staring the famed Bundesliga winter break right in the eyes. There are mixed feelings about the break and if it carries any merit to it. If you are a Borussia Dortmund fan, you will be welcoming the cold dim light of winter with open arms. Dortmund currently sit in sixth place, a glaring 12 points behind the leaders Bayern. New players still seem to be having issues integrating into the Tuchel system, and add to that the astonishingly bad form away from home. All of this has Dortmund fans highly concerned about the club.
In Germany, the winter break offers a chance for teams to renew themselves. It gives the trainer and clubs a chance to work on things that are weighing the system down, a chance to begin anew. While it seems corny, Dortmund has used this winter break before as a way of getting things together. The last year that Klopp was in charge, Dortmund went into the winter break in last place. The tale of the two halves of the season couldn’t have been any different, as Dortmund climbed North in the table that year to finish in 7th.
Christian Pulisic after scoring against PSV in Marbella Training Camp
It’s not unreasonable for Dortmund fans to think the club couldn’t make a push to establish itself yet again as one of the top clubs in Germany. Tuchel will need to find the right balance that he’s been after. Injuries have hampered the side from having any sort of consistency, and has forced Tuchel to rotate the squad more than he typically would. After returning from training camp in Spain, Dortmund still seem to have a list of injuries that will continue this rotation policy.
It’s up to Tuchel and the players to find a balance. In the first half of the season, the squad often had the lion’s share of possession but still came away empty handed or with only one point. This indicates the team has lost it’s ability to impose it’s will and break down deep sitting opponents. That wasn’t the case last year for Dortmund, but having lost three key players in the summer it has taken time for this current squad to find it’s voice. It’s time yet again for Dortmund to renew itself in the Winter Break, to wash away the first half of the season and let the light of the second half of the season bring new beginnings.
While finishing first is unlikely, being 12 points back from Bayern, the squad is still in distance of second place only 9 points back of Leipzig. Dortmund CEO Watzke has indicated that to be their target this year, and if Dortmund can come together in the winter like they did in the 14/15 Season, it’s quite feasible to see them taking second place back. Dortmund travel to Bremen on 21. January to restart their campaign.
