Borussia Dortmund’s Marcel Sabitzer: BVB win vs Bochum is what counts

Borussia Dortmund’s win against VFL Bochum this past weekend has been seen as a sign that the club are starting to see the fruit of the labor put in by Nuri Sahin and Sven Bender since joining the club’s coaching staff. The improved result is a welcome change from the first half of the season where Bochum, now firmly amongst those sides considered to be a “bogey team” for Dortmund, really gave Die Schwarzgelben serious trouble. 

After the game, among the players to say a few words to the media was Marcel Sabitzer. Sabitzer, who had a bright game for Dortmund, noted that what mattered most for the club at this time was the three points: 

"But for us, only the win counts. And with three in a row, you cannot complain. We've worked hard during the winter break. The aspiration in Dortmund is to play in a refreshing way. We'll continue to work on that."

- Marcel Sabitzer

Despite the hard work Sabitzer mentions the team has put in over the course of the winter break to right the ship, there’s still clearly room for improvement according to the Austrian international:

"In the end it's a deserved result. But it was hard work. We were a bit sloppy and didn't play the positional game the way we wanted to. We have to improve."

- Marcel Sabitzer

Improvements on the defensive end will be important for Dortmund to continue to target. Nico Schlotterbeck’s rash attempt at trying to go for the ball that led to the own goal opened the game up for Bochum, and for a while they were able to put Dortmund under some serious pressure and create chances. Overall however, Sabitzer felt that the team reacted well to this instance of adversity: 

"When you play against Bochum , you know what you're going to get. Lots of long balls and tough challenges. We handled the situation well. The own goal naturally played into Bochum's hands."

- Marcel Sabitzer

Unlike previous duels between these two clubs, Dortmund managed to stop the game from unraveling in Bochum’s favor. Sabitzer in particular helped make sure that Dortmund came away with all three points by assisting Niclas Füllkrug for one of the goals that made up the German international's first hattrick in Dortmund colors. With the newly gained momentum in the side, Sabitzer and his teammates will look to continue this rich vein of form as they look to take on Heidenheim next week.