It will be the last of nine games played in April, the end of an energy draining marathon, both physically and mentally speaking. Thomas Tuchel demanded "focus once again" prior to Saturday's home game (15:30 CET) against 1. FC Cologne.

"It was unalloyed delight just now in the changing room", said Marco Reus late Wednesday evening after the 3-2 victory away at FC Bayern Munich. However, the party mood lasted just a short time. "We will let ourselves enjoy the moment, but only briefly, because it is important for us to raise our game in the Bundesliga. We want to finish third to avoid a play off for Champions League football", explained the man who put away BVB's first goal of the evening.

"Such special victories are the best kind of affirmation. They give you a lot of self-confidence for your upcoming games", said Thomas Tuchel on Friday, tracing an arc from Munich to Cologne, who BVB will host this Saturday in the Signal Iduna. Their task now is to "focus on the forthcoming challenge, to get the balance right, and to prepare ourselves for what is coming up".

Tuchel demands that his team "expend all their energy once more in the league and go above and beyond once more. Anything less will not be sufficient against opponents who are very awkward to play against. We must be prepared mentally to toil hard". The manager's plea that "everybody who has picked up a knock must push through it" was not only directed at the somewhat bruised Bender, Sokratis and Weigl. There will be time afterwards to recover from such ailments.  (br)