What the Mario Götze injury means to Borussia Dortmund
![DORTMUND, GERMANY - NOVEMBER 25: Mario Goetze of Borussia Dortmund celebrates after scoring the goal to the 3:0 during the Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke 04 at the Signal Iduna Park on November 25, 2017 in Dortmund, Germany. (Photo by Alexandre Simoes/Borussia Dortmund/Getty Images) DORTMUND, GERMANY - NOVEMBER 25: Mario Goetze of Borussia Dortmund celebrates after scoring the goal to the 3:0 during the Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke 04 at the Signal Iduna Park on November 25, 2017 in Dortmund, Germany. (Photo by Alexandre Simoes/Borussia Dortmund/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/4377f90a4b26c921fd43014e2896e9e717a87ef71af7fffe2c1e2ba0da40a74a.jpg)
2) Champions League qualification race takes a blow
Borussia Dortmund currently sit in 5th place in the Bundesliga table with 21 points, 3 points behind Borussia Mönchengladbach and Schalke. Meanwhile, Bayern sit 3 points clear at the top with 29 points and RB Leipzig on their tails. For a club that boasts about its claim as the second best team in Germany, hanging on to 5th place is a massive underachievement.
With Götze out of commission, Dortmund will struggle to make up the ground needed to assure Champions League qualification next year. While there are certainly problems with the manager’s tactics, it can be undeniable that injuries have plagued Dortmund for awhile now, best depicted by the lack of time Marco Reus and Mario Götze have spent on the field together.
Since @MarioGoetze returned to @BVB in 2016, he and @woodyinho have only spent 97 minutes together on the field. #bvb
— Yellowwallpod (@Yellowwallpod) November 27, 2017
(📸Lukas Schulze/Bongarts/Getty Images) pic.twitter.com/4xagsbaasf
Perhaps if Dortmund can stay healthy, they could truly play to their full potential instead of putting in underwhelming performances week in and week out.