BVB plunges into winter depression - troubled days for Terzic

Bundesliga - BVB plunges into winter depression - troubled days for Terzic

Even the BVB club boss felt little desire for the final act of the latest tragedy. Hans-Joachim Watzke's seat in the stands was already empty when the Yellow Wall's most loyal fans acknowledged their Dortmund team's poor performance with a resounding whistle.

The 1:1 (1:1) draw against FSV Mainz plunged Borussia into a deep winter depression, drove many spectators out of the stadium early and intensified the discussion about Edin Terzic.

In response to the inevitable question of whether he believes he will still be BVB coach in the new year, the 41-year-old answered with astonishing confidence: "Of course I believe I will."

After six competitive matches without a win and a drop to fifth place in the Bundesliga, nobody in Dortmund is talking about the championship anymore. In the meantime, even qualifying for the Champions League again is in acute danger.

Bosses discuss coach Terzic

At the upcoming regular closed meeting of the BVB management, the work of the coach is therefore likely to be critically scrutinized before Christmas. "We imagined everything differently, but this is the reality now," complained Terzic.

Media reports of an alleged player revolt against the coach had already caused additional controversy before the game. Watzke immediately denied that players had called on him to replace Terzic.

After the final whistle, captain Emre Can sounded more like a supporter of his continued employment: "It's not always down to the coach. It has nothing to do with the coach if the ball hits the crossbar."

Nevertheless, BVB are facing a turbulent few days with much speculation about the future of the coach. The fact that Watzke sat in a box with sporting director Sebastian Kehl for a long time after the game was immediately interpreted as an indication of an initial Terzic tribunal. However, this is not unusual.

Terzic: "I know my responsibility"

Despite the increasing public criticism of his work, Terzic expressed his interest in continuing the collaboration: "I have signed a contract until 2025, and with that I have documented how much I would like to stay with this club for a long time."

The self-confessed BVB fan, who was born in nearby Menden, added with a serious expression: "It's not up to me to decide how long I stay here. Of course, the management and the result decide that. And the results in recent weeks have simply not been good, we know that. I know my responsibility, I also know the size of the club."

The two different faces of his team, celebrated in the Champions League but disappointing in the Bundesliga, were on show in just one game this time. After a strong first 30 minutes with two crossbar goals and a deserved 1:0 lead through Julian Brandt (29), it looked like a conciliatory end to the year.

However, the equalizer by Mainz's Sepp Van den Berg (43) caused great uncertainty and an indiscreet second half. "The situation isn't easy, it sucks if you're honest," admitted international Brandt on Sat.1. "It's the unsatisfactory end to an unsatisfactory first half of the season. It's always stupid to go into the break with a draw or a defeat."

Expert sees mistakes by BVB management

Sky pundit Dietmar Hamann expressed what many BVB fans have long feared. "They won't finish in the top four the way they performed today," said the former international. However, he excluded Terzic from his criticism: "I think the coach is the poorest dog at the moment because he has been let down too often by the players."

Managing director Watzke and sporting director Sebastian Kehl should have held the professionals more accountable. "The coach was also left out in the cold somewhere."

Ahead of the upcoming meeting between the club bosses, Terzic promoted his own cause and referred to similar critical situations in the past. As Lucien Favre's successor, he led the team, which had been reeling for a long time, to cup victory in mid-December 2020.

Last season, BVB made an impressive comeback under his direction after a weak start to the season and even came close to winning the league title. "It's part of my history at Borussia that we've always shown a completely different face in the second half of the season. That is the clear mandate to the team, that we can do that again."