Mats Hummels on Borussia Dortmund: We’re not playing at the level of Leverkusen or Stuttgart.”
Speaking to Sport Bild (via @bvbnewsblog), Mats Hummels has given his thoughts on Borussia Dortmund’s style of play ahead of their Champions League final against Real Madrid on Saturday.
Dortmund finish fifth in the Bundesliga this season and against the top two Bayer Leverkusen and Stuttgart were significantly off the pace. When asked about the games against Stuttgart, Hummels said: “I was furious because I was of the opinion that Borussia Dortmund shouldn’t play like that, against any opponent in the world. I didn’t think it could go on like this. I felt insulted in my honour to stand on the pitch in that kit. So submissive, so inferior in footballing terms. The two Stuttgart games and the away game in Leverkusen. That was barricading with 11 men in the box.”
When asked if he had complained about the style of play, Hummels replied with: “I gave a lot of suggestions.” the defender then emphasised, he gave suggestions to Edin Terzic: “Yes. Really to everyone involved. Just to try and play better football again. I went to the coach’s office and we talked. With the clear opinion that we clearly have to improve in the forward play.”
The 35-year-old revealed that there was a turning point in the style of play: “It clearly got better after the winter break. That’s also down to the co-trainers Nuri Sahin and Sven Bender who came in.” Both Sahin and Bender were brought in in the second half of the season to assist Terzic in coaching the team.
Hummels again expressed his displeasure with Dortmund’s recent style of play: “We have a different self-image, but we’re not playing at the level of Leverkusen or Stuttgart. But that’s what I expect from Borussia Dortmund. I want to see a team come to Dortmund and be scared because they know that they have to really suffer to have a chance. And they don’t think they can have 60 per cent possession without any problems. Borussia Dortmund must be able to completely dominate every opponent in the Bundesliga for 45 minutes and not only be successful on the counter-attack against good opponents.”
When asked if Dortmund need more quality, Hummels said: “You can still teach any footballer at any age, that’s the point. We have good footballers with good skills. You can still get a lot out of our squad.”
On Saturday, most of these players get to play in the biggest games of their careers when they play Real Madrid in the Champions League final at Wembley. The last time Dortmund reached the Champions League final was in 2013 when they lost to Bayern Munich at Wembley.
GGFN | Jack Meenan
