Borussia Dortmund manager Niko Kovac has praised his team's offensive qualities in their last two preseason games against Arsenal and AS Roma.
The BVB netted thrice in their Emirates Cup win over the Gunners while fighting back a two-goal deficit to draw 2-2 with the Giallorossi.
Having struggled for goals during the BVB Evonik Japan Tour (just one in 180 minutes across two games) Dortmund have been able to turn things around from an attacking standpoint.
Following their game on Saturday, the manager expressed his satisfaction with this to the press as he said:
"Well, I’m very satisfied. We created a lot of chances today, too. That increases our chances of winning games."
Indeed, Die Schwarzgelben upped the ante against Roma after falling 2-0 behind early on. Julian Ryerson, on his first appearance post the World Cup, pulled one back in the 12th minute before turning provider for Serhou Guirassy as Dortmund got back into the tie in just over a quarter of an hour.
However, defensive cohesion remains a concern. Across six preseason games, Dortmund kept just one clean sheet, a narrow 1-0 win over FC Tokyo. But it's also worth noting that they didn't have some of their key players such as Nico Schlotterbeck, Emre Can and Waldemar Anton, whose only appearance in the preseason was in that shutout against Tokyo.
Kovac then cheekily responded saying:
"If we’d kept a clean sheet and won only 1–0, you would have said: ‘Yeah, Niko, that was another bust .’ But now it’s the other way around…"
Dortmund begin 2026-27 season against Bayern
With the warmups now behind us, Borussia Dortmund look forward to hosting Bayern Munich in a thrilling Der Klassiker in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup on Saturday, 22 August.
The match presents another chance for Niko Kovac to lift his first trophy with the side, although their recent results in the fixture haven't been the best.
Bayern prevailed 3-2 on their last visit to Westfalonstadion in February, having also beaten them 2-1 at the Allianz Arena a few months prior.
In fact, over the last five encounters between the German rivals, the Bavarians have won thrice while Die Prussians have one, a 2-0 win in Munich in March 2024.
In just the Supercup, the teams have clashed nine times with Bayern narrowly edging their eternal rivals with five wins to four.
If Dortmund were to avoid another defeat, it's imperative for them to find stability in defense while continuing to fire at all cylinders.
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