Hans-Joachim Watzke defends Lucien Favre; says Marco Reus is very important for Borussia Dortmund

Hans-Joachim Watzke spoke about the financial impact of COVID-19 on Borussia Dortmund and also defended Marco Reus and Lucien Favre at the general shareholders meeting on Wednesday.

Borussia Dortmund’s finances have been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with every game without fans costing the club around four million euros. Still, Watzke said that ghost games are vital for Dortmund and the rest of the Bundesliga. He added that the club could lose around 70-75 million euros due to the coronavirus crisis, but they have sufficient liquidity to deal with the danger.

"“The big clubs are hit hardest by the crisis,” Watzke said. “BVB has the largest stadium capacity. Each game costs us four million euros. Of course we also have the second most expensive squad. It is no coincidence that FC Barcelona, for example, also has major problems.”"

The Borussia Dortmund CEO also said that the club has a very talented squad at the moment, and they are striving to break the dominance of Bayern Munich. The Black and Yellows have finished second in each of the last two seasons, but Watzke added that Bayern’s ability to spend double the money on their squad gives them the advantage. He also said that Borussia Dortmund’s best days are still ahead of them, and the club will continue to fight for the title.

"“We have a team that is highly talented. We will be able to further strengthen this potential in the coming years. We are striving to break the dominance of FC Bayern Munich. We are much closer to them. We must continue to work on it. But there is an economic limit; they spend almost double the amount on their squad.”“BVB will find a strength that will be even greater than before Corona. We will tackle these challenges. Borussia Dortmund has a great future ahead of it if we have patience in the coming months.”"

Watzke also defended Borussia Dortmund head coach Lucien Favre, whose future has been the subject of a lot of speculation. Favre’s contract is due to expire at the end of the season, and Watzke refused to rule out an extension for the 63 year old trainer.

"“I want to take a stand for Lucien Favre. He came in 2018 after a great upheaval and has finished second twice. Both times we played very well in the league. To judge the coach only by whether he has won a championship is too narrow-minded.”“We will sit down together in January or February and see how things go from there. But there is no decision yet. We are quite relaxed about these talks.”"

Watzke was also asked about the future of Marco Reus, and said that the Borussia Dortmund captain is very important for the club.

"“Marco Reus plays a very important role at this club,” Watzke said. “He was injured for a very long time. He has fought his way back into the team. Marco has already scored the 1-0 goal 50 or 60 times in his time at BVB. We are very happy that he is here. His reputation is beyond question.”"

He also praised the Borussia Dortmund squad for their decision to waive part of their salaries, as it helped the club save 11 million euros, preventing job losses.