Kovac takes over Dortmund: New hope for the tumbling black yellow!

Kovac takes over Dortmund: New hope for the tumbling black yellow!

On February 2, 2025, Niko Kovac took over the management at Borussia Dortmund and will be a new coach for the club until 2026. Kovac, who arrived in a black Mercedes SUV on Sunday morning at 7:45 a.m. on the club premises in Dortmund-Brackel with his brother Robert in a black Mercedes SUV, faced the team from an acute crisis. The temperatures were three degrees on this day.

The first to meet Kovac on the club premises were Lars Ricken (48) and Sebastian Kehl (44), who only arrived a few minutes after his arrival at 8:13 a.m. and 8:17 a.m. Both needed the help of a photographer of BILD to orientate themselves on the processes on site.

a new beginning for Dortmund

Niko Kovac will imagine the team today and will lead his first training session at 11 a.m. His predecessor Nuri Sahin was released eight days ago, which was left by the responsible uncertainties. The club is currently on 11th place in the Bundesliga and is well on the way to returning to the Champions League, which is a central goal for Kovac. He competes with the knowledge that Borussia Dortmund has the second highest salary expenditure in the Bundesliga, but at the same time has to struggle with avoidable mistakes and a dwindling number of top performers.

The official announcement of Kovac's obligation took place on Thursday morning. Together with the club, he agreed on an 18-month contract without a clause in summer. Kovac, who previously worked for Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayern Munich, AS Monaco and VfL Wolfsburg, follows a pragmatic, defensive approach to improve the combative properties of the team. This is particularly important because Dortmund was susceptible to direct attacks in the last games and could only win a Bundesliga away game this season.

internal tensions and transfer problems

The situation at Borussia Dortmund is also characterized by internal tensions. There are inconsistencies between Lars Ricken, who acts as CEO for sports, and sports director Sebastian Kehl, as well as between Kehl and Sven Mislintat, the technical director. Matthias Sammer, a consultant of the association, recently gave up his role as a commentator and will no longer report on Dortmund games.

The sporting challenges are numerous. The association urgently needs a left -back, additional protection in central defense and another midfielder. Salih Özcan was called back from his loan agreement near Wolfsburg, but he does not turn out to be an equivalent replacement. There is also pessimism with regard to possible new additions before closing the transfer window.

After a disappointing start to the season in which the successes were rare, Dortmund secured the place in the Champions League playoff round with a victory against Shakhtar Donetsk. Kovac will hold the players responsible and expects team spirit and commitment in the difficult phase in which the club is currently located. His strict approach to the defensive could be the key to get the team back on course and gradually integrate the football ideals, which was once established under Jürgen Klopp. In view of these challenges,

a demanding task is waiting for Kovac that will test both his skills as a trainer and team dynamics. Borussia Dortmund is on the crossroads and hopes for a positive turn under the leadership of her new trainer.

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