Borussia Dortmund face a heavyweight of European football this week – qualifying for the last eight isn’t a foregone conclusion for BVB. Dortmund travel to Italy with mixed feelings ahead of Tuesday’s (20:45 CET) game against Juventus: Roman Weidenfeller sees the match as a welcome break from the Bundesliga but Jürgen Klopp begs to differ: “It’s nice to play in a different competition but the league is of paramount importance to us.”
BVB hoping to pick something up in Italy
Borussia go into the game against the Serie A table-toppers in good form, having won their last three league matches, scoring ten goals in the process. “We don’t want to lose heavily, but it’s also worth noting that we aren’t favourites,” said Klopp.
Ahead of the trip to Turn Hans-Joachim Watzke said: “It’s better to travel to Italy on the back of three wins rather than three losses, but of course, Juventus are the best team there. Both games are going to be tight.” Midfielder Nuri Sahin is optimistic: “We head there hoping to pick something up. It’s going to be a feisty dual.”
BVB topped their group despite being in the midst of a domestic crisis, which gave their supporters the opportunity to continue on their continental travels. Juventus found life trickier in their group: They finished second behind Athletico Madrid but are faring much better in the domestic championship.
Juventus and BVB have met in Europe before. The clashes between the sides in the 1990s were some of the greatest games played in the UEFA Cup and Champions League. In the 1993 UEFA Cup Final Juventus won 3-1 in Dortmund before winning the second leg 3-0. However, BVB got revenge in the 1997 Champions League Final, which they won 3-1 in Munich.
The Turin side play their home games in the new Juventus Stadium. 2,300 Dortmund supporters will be in the stadium. The spectators will be hoping that their side put themselves in a good position ahead of the return leg, which takes place on Wednesday, 18th March.
Klopp: “We’re heading the right way”
"We can’t afford such lapses in concentration,” stressed Ilkay Gündogan, remembering how Dortmund conceded two unnecessary goals in Stuttgart on Friday evening. “It was obvious that the team were nervous when they were 2-1 ahead,” said Klopp. “We’re heading the right way though,” he stressed.
The positive trend can in large parts be credited to the excellent collaboration of Marco Reus and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Gabon international has scored four goals and assisted two in the last three games, while Reus had three goals and one assist. “I really profit from playing with him. Personally, we also get along really well; we’re almost like brothers,” explained Aubameyang.
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Borussia Dortmund face a heavyweight of European football this week – qualifying for the last eight isn’t a foregone conclusion for BVB. Dortmund travel to Italy with mixed feelings ahead of Tuesday’s (20:45 CET) game against Juventus: Roman Weidenfeller sees the match as a welcome break from the Bundesliga but Jürgen Klopp begs to differ: “It’s nice to play in a different competition but the league is of paramount importance to us.”
BVB hoping to pick something up in Italy
Borussia go into the game against the Serie A table-toppers in good form, having won their last three league matches, scoring ten goals in the process. “We don’t want to lose heavily, but it’s also worth noting that we aren’t favourites,” said Klopp.
Ahead of the trip to Turn Hans-Joachim Watzke said: “It’s better to travel to Italy on the back of three wins rather than three losses, but of course, Juventus are the best team there. Both games are going to be tight.” Midfielder Nuri Sahin is optimistic: “We head there hoping to pick something up. It’s going to be a feisty dual.”
BVB topped their group despite being in the midst of a domestic crisis, which gave their supporters the opportunity to continue on their continental travels. Juventus found life trickier in their group: They finished second behind Athletico Madrid but are faring much better in the domestic championship.
Juventus and BVB have met in Europe before. The clashes between the sides in the 1990s were some of the greatest games played in the UEFA Cup and Champions League. In the 1993 UEFA Cup Final Juventus won 3-1 in Dortmund before winning the second leg 3-0. However, BVB got revenge in the 1997 Champions League Final, which they won 3-1 in Munich.
The Turin side play their home games in the new Juventus Stadium. 2,300 Dortmund supporters will be in the stadium. The spectators will be hoping that their side put themselves in a good position ahead of the return leg, which takes place on Wednesday, 18th March.
Klopp: “We’re heading the right way”
"We can’t afford such lapses in concentration,” stressed Ilkay Gündogan, remembering how Dortmund conceded two unnecessary goals in Stuttgart on Friday evening. “It was obvious that the team were nervous when they were 2-1 ahead,” said Klopp. “We’re heading the right way though,” he stressed.
The positive trend can in large parts be credited to the excellent collaboration of Marco Reus and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Gabon international has scored four goals and assisted two in the last three games, while Reus had three goals and one assist. “I really profit from playing with him. Personally, we also get along really well; we’re almost like brothers,” explained Aubameyang.
