Inside Borussia Dortmund: What we learned from the third episode of the Amazon Prime documentary

The third episode of the ‘Inside Borussia Dortmund’ documentary was released yesterday on Amazon Prime Video, giving us a special insight of the club’s 2018-19 season. Here are some things we learned from the second episode.

Borussia Dortmund’s brush with bankruptcy

The episode covers the path that led Borussia Dortmund from a league win in 2001/2002 to their near bankruptcy in 2005. They had accrued massive debt loads as well as were just in the process of finishing their new stadium. This portion shows a younger Hans-Jaochim Watzke being brought into club and his role in bringing Dortmund back to life.

Had Dortmund filed for bankruptcy they would have immediately been dropped into the 3rd division. This was a crucial moment in Dortmund history as this set the beginning of the clubs strategy for the next decade. Had Dortmund filed bankruptcy and dropped to the 3rd division, there’s no chance they would be anywhere near where they are now.

The massive win against Hertha Berlin last season

One of Borussia Dortmund’s most important wins last season came away to Hertha Berlin, a fixture they have really struggled with in recent seasons. The episode recounted the days before as well as the speech Watzke gave the squad pre-game. Watzke had incentivised the team with bonuses if they won the game in Berlin, along with a speech on what legends they could become by bringing the title back to Dortmund.

Without key players like Gotze, Witsel and Alcacer, Dortmund and Berlin played an incredible back and forth game. We hear from players, Favre and journalists as they reminisce on Dortmund’s incredible 3-2 win with a last minute Marco Reus goal.

The Klopp Era

This episode also showed the emotional roller coaster that followed the hiring of Jurgen Klopp. Watzke also spoke about how much it meant to have Klopp as part of the team, saying there would never be anyone who could replicate the team that he, Zorc and Klopp made. He described it as a once in a lifetime experience.

Starting with the back to back Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012, with Dortmund also winning the double in 2012. The emergence of a young Gotze helped push the squad to their first title in 2011 and then repeating in 2012, outlining what is potentially the best phase in Dortmunds history as a club. The double in 2012 was clearly the best moment for club officials, when winning the cup in Berlin you can see how momentous that was for them to come from where they were in 2005 to winning the double in 2012.

Watzke points out the significance of the Double for Dortmund, but also how significant it was in Bayern turning themselves around. They would not sit still and become the 2nd best in Germany.

Finally, ending with the heart-breaking loss in the Champions League final in 2013. Watzke said what we all thought at the time, that if this young team had remained patient and stayed together for 2-3 more years, they likely would have won the Champions League final together.

The embarassing 5-0 defeat to Bayern

Included was the build up to the match against Bayern last season, with Dortmund up 2 points in the table it was a chance for Dortmund to show how serious they were about winning the title. Faced with the chance to take a 5 point lead over Bayern, Dortmund had one of their worst games of the season and Bayern had one of their best, thumping Dortmund 5-0.

It was not fun to re-live, with how excited everyone was for the game it’s a tough reminder of what we know is coming as we head to the end of the 2018/2019 season.