German champions in 2011 and 2012, German cup champions in 2012, Champions League finalists in 2013, German cup finalist in 2014, with the 2014 Bundesliga runners-up spot in striking distance: Borussia Dortmund are currently enjoying their most successful spell ever. Such consistency at the highest level of football with two first and two second place finishes within four years, including three final appearances, is unheard of in the history of the club.

After 31 matches played in the 2013-14 Bundesliga season, Borussia Dortmund need only three more points - due to their superior goal difference of 21 - to seal the runners-up spot. With that second place in the Bundesliga (the target has been a top-three finish to secure automatic qualification for Europe’s elite club competition) and their progress to the quarter-finals stage of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, BVB have not only met but exceeded their targets for the season, despite being plagued by injuries all year long. And on 17 Mai 2017, the Schwarzgelben even have a chance to claim their second trophy of the year after winning the Supercup in July 2013 when they again take on Bayern Munich in the DFB Cup final in Berlin.

A second-place finish in the Bundesliga is not only prestigious for the Black n Yellows, it also pays off in hard cash. Second place in the league means more domestic television revenues (“TV  ranking”)  but above all a much larger slice of UEFA’s market pool payments. The runners-up will receive 35 percent from that pool if three sides from the Bundesliga qualify for the Champions League and 30 percent if four make it to the group stages respectively, while the third-placed team only receives a 20 percent share in either scenario.

Regardless of the outcome of the DFB Cup final, as runners-up Borussia Dortmund would also be guaranteed a spot in the 2014 Supercup taking place two weeks before the start of the season on 9 August at Signal Iduna Park, with Bayern Munich providing the opposition once again.

But first things first - after two days with no training, BVB will start their preparations for Saturday’s top game at Leverkusen with two training sessions on Tuesday. “There are still nine points to play for, and we want all nine,” said Oliver Kirch.