Dortmund Management Unsettled by Schlotterbeck’s Championship Remarks

Borussia Dortmund’s management has expressed dissatisfaction with comments made by Nico Schlotterbeck following their 3-2 victory against Heidenheim on Sunday.

In the aftermath of the match, which narrowed the gap between Dortmund and Bayern Munich to six points, Schlotterbeck stated, “I think, as BVB, we need to start saying ‘We want to be champions!’. We were a bit lucky to win today, but I don’t care. We won!”

These remarks have not been well-received by key figures such as head coach Niko Kovac, sporting director Sebastian Kehl, and director of sport Lars Ricken, as they amplify the pressure on the coaching staff.

In response to Schlotterbeck’s statements, Kovac remarked, “I don’t know if Schlotti said that verbatim. My focus is on the rearview mirror. I want to see the teams behind us shrink in size first. We need to accumulate points to maintain our distance from those trailing us.”

Kehl added, “Of course, we don’t want to relinquish this second place by the end of the year, that’s obvious. What you have, you want to keep. We must be realistic regarding the top position; Bayern are performing exceptionally well. They typically win the German championship, the DFB Cup, and the Champions League.”

Dortmund has the opportunity to reduce the gap to Bayern to just three points during their match against Wolfsburg on Saturday, while Bayern faces Hoffenheim on Sunday. Furthermore, later this month, Dortmund will host Bayern at Signal Iduna Park, with matches against Atalanta in the Champions League also on the schedule.