Key takeaways from Borussia Dortmund’s first half of the season

With the new year just around the corner, Borussia Dortmund’s first half of the season has come to an end. The Hinrunde was a turbulent time for Die Schwarzgelben, with the club going through phases of decent performances, which were inevitably followed by horrendous results that would stifle the club’s overall progression.

After a blistering start to the campaign that saw Borussia Dortmund beat Eintracht Frankfurt 5-2, the performance that left many hopeful that this season would be somewhat different. The team played with an intensity and efficiency not seen since the Jurgen Klopp era. In season’s past Dortmund had developed the reputation of a “second half team”, or a team that would sleepwalk through half the match and only wake up when they were down a goal or two. Despite conceding twice, Dortmund showed great fight and ruthlessness, which made for a refreshing sight.

Despite this strong start, subsequent losses to Bayern Munich in the DFL Supercup and SC Freiburg in the Bundesliga seemed to blunt the edge we had seen in Borussia Dortmund’s play in their first game. The team seemed to lack rhythm at times and cast a disjointed figure, making games harder for themselves not due to any lack of effort, but because the players were simply not on the same page.

In addition to this lack of rhythm, injuries began to plague the team like never before. Dortmund have often had a bad history when it comes to injuries, but head coach Marco Rose was often forced to produce a makeshift starting 11, which only made the initial problem of a lack of rhythm even more glaring. Players were unable to develop any chemistry on the pitch because there was a constant merry-go-round of players on and off the injury list.

Despite all the drama and complications, Dortmund have managed to hold on to second place, even if they remain 9 points adrift of Bayern. While its far from what was perhaps expected, Marco Rose and his side have come through no small amount of complications to remain in this position, and considering the state of the squad throughout the Hinrunde, there is much to be learned from how the season has gone so far. Lets take a look at some of the key takeaways from the first half of the season.