BVB on the hunt for superlatives – and a title

Of course, with the DFB Cup Final in three weeks, a real highlight, a chance at a title, awaits the Black and Yellows, the opportunity to gilt edge this season. That a lack of effort in the league would be counterproductive to that end is beyond question. Nevertheless, it is incredible to witness how Borussia continue to turn up at matches, with any background noise from outside the club failing to have an impact on them. "It is a great feeling to be able to rely on them in this way, to be able to feel their energy and to know that they we will always put in a great performance regardless of what is going on off the field", opined Thomas Tuchel after the game. 

With regard to the Mats Hummels situation, the manager was once again able to find the right words. "It wasn't hard to imagine that the fans would want to give voice to their dissatisfaction", he said. "It is not pleasant for your captain to have to deal with such an atmosphere in your own stadium. I think there is a difference between whistling and offensive songs which go too far in their content." Here again Tuchel put his team's character to the fore, which Hummels played a part in: "The team is a tight-knit group. Mats was able to rely on his team mates continuing to play with him as normal - irrespective of what happens. That gave him the sense of security to allow him to stay calm and relaxed, and to play a strong game."

"We can not be accused of not having given everything"

Surprisingly, this 'tight-knit' group - thanks to the goal scored by Gladbach's Andre Hahn in Munich - is still not out of the running for the title. Nevertheless, with their five point lead, Bayern Munich would need to lose their last two games against Ingolstadt and Hannover - admittedly, something that is rather fanciful than realistic, while BVB face an opponent next week, namely Frankfurt, who is deep in the relegation battle and will, concomitantly, give everything they can to avoid the drop into the second Bundesliga. "I don't think the Bavarians will let that happen", said Marcel Schmelzer after the game against Wolfsburg. Gonzalo Castro concurred with him: "If it happened, it would be fantastic, of course. But seriously, I do not believe that Bayern Munich will lose two more games. At least we can not be accused of not having given everything."

In any case, BVB is now the best second placed team of all time. After the bitter defeat in Liverpool, the team got straight back in the saddle, and won the subsequent four competitive matches with 14 goals for and only 1 against. "We processed that Liverpool game and analysed it well. We drew the necessary lessons from it and are showing now that we are a strong team mentally", clarified Marco Reus.

Still three weeks until Berlin

Given these statistics, perhaps you would be reluctant to highlight any one player in particular, as every individual is contributing on a weekly basis to the success of the team. It is, however, worth mentioning Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang at this juncture, who, by scoring twice against the Wolves, took his goal tally for the season up to 25 - no other foreign player has scored more goals in one season for BVB. However, that would not have been possible without the support of all the other players in the squad. The Gabonese is still in the race for the golden boot, being only two goals behind Robert Lewandowski, who failed to score this weekend in Munich.

"We have really pulled ourselves together in the last few weeks, as we still have something great ahead of us. For this reason it is important that we stay on it", said Marco Reus before leaving the Mixed Zone on Saturday. There are still three weeks to go before the end of the season. Borussia Dortmund then has the opportunity to crown this season with a title, in a direct duel with FC Bayern.

Dennis-Julian Gottschlich