analysis
The final spurt for the European Cup places employs even more than half the Bundesliga. Three clubs in particular think they are upset.
Almost logical that the applause of a special European Cup evening should now help Borussia Dortmund. Niko Kovac did not have to think long, which from his point of view the best season performance under his direction in the Champions League against FC Barcelona (3-1) should follow: Please also play in the Bundesliga game against Borussia Mönchengladbach (Sunday 5:30 p.m.).
The performance against Barca is said to be the blueprint for the final sprint with five game days. “We will show you the up and down so that you can recall it against Mönchengladbach”said Kovac. “If everyone does the meter when everyone goes over the point where it hurts, then we also have the quality of winning Bundesliga games.”
Niklas Süle puzzles over the contradiction
A coach said this shortly after his fan-carvy team had just made a worldwide star ensemble forced to his knees. “If we win all five league games, the likelihood that we will play Champions League next year”also noticed the strong defender Niklas Süle against Barcelona.
With such services, many fundamental questions would not have been raised in the black and yellow. Especially: why not always like that? “The question is why it doesn’t work in the Bundesliga games. We have to face them”Süle admitted. The contradiction is not the case for the Westphalia this season. The previous year’s finalist only came to the Champions League because Germany received an additional fifth starting place.
In this season, the league was disappointing for a long time, in the meantime the international places seemed far away, but at the latest since 2-2 at FC Bayern, BVB wants to use Momentum – and only has three points behind the sixth, SC Freiburg, which would be associated with the qualification for the Conference League.
The flow of FSV Mainz 05 is stalling
And just as Dortmund turns on the overtaking lane, the flow of FSV Mainz 05 is fifth as fifth: Four games without victory shake the confidence of the surprise team who are still against the top three, i.e. at Bayern Munich (26.04.2025), against Eintracht Frankfurt (04.05) and Bayer Leverkusen (17.05). The zero five had ten points ahead of BVB – now it is just four.
Especially there is no efficiency, consistency and discipline, such as five references. Do the zero five throw a historical chance away? The home game against VfL Wolfsburg (Saturday 3:30 p.m.) will call for coach Bo Henriksen to the character test so that his ensemble does not rely for the reward of a season.
Disillusionment in Mönchengladbach
Similar to the mixture on the Lower Rhine. Often enough, European Cup channels in the Borussia Park sounded, now after the home defeat against Freiburg (1: 2), disillusionment in Mönchengladbach was announced. As the table seventh, the Fohlenelf would currently be tumbled from the European Cup ranks.
Goal scorer Tim Kleindienst also talked publicly after the setback. “Somehow we have a body language as if the season is already through and it was nothing more. But that’s exactly what is about something, and that’s exactly what we should go up two courses again.” Whether the teammates listen to the striker?
Werder Bremen can hope again
Werder Bremen has been put on the international starting places. The team of coach Ole Werner, which is slidful in a veritable crisis at the beginning of the year, goes as ninth with a powerful upsight into the home games against VfL Bochum (Saturday 3:30 p.m.) and FC St. Pauli (27.04). Also included: the blossomed hope of hope Oliver Burke, who stands for the transformation like no other.
Through the successes against Eintracht Frankfurt (2-0) and VfB Stuttgart (2: 1) If the European Euphoria is flamed exactly by the team that seemed to have no future on the Weser after the cup flamage at Arminia Bielefeld (1: 2). Routinier Leonardo Bittencourt recommends that you no longer get involved in the constantly changing mood swings. “There is always a lot of talk from us, from the first relegation candidate to golden pineapple, until Europa-League feels like everything in one year. It was so last year. We won’t be put off by that.”
On top with Werder: Mitchell Weiser cheers in Stuttgart.
The protagonists do not want to put pressure on themselves, knowing that the fans of the green-whites were out of the house, there would be European cup games under floodlights on the Easter dike for the first time in decades and a half.
FC Augsburg is the third best round team
Of which FC Augsburg also dreams, who is tenth with Werder after the away win at VfL Bochum (2: 1). The Bavarian Swabians are third in the second half of the season. Only Bavaria and Leverkusen won more points. It is already the third best season of the Augsburg Bundesliga history that started in 2011. In 2015, Markus Weinzierl led the FCA to the Europa League, where Liverpool FC only set the stop sign.
The current high flight under coach Jess Thorup is closely linked to goalkeeper Finn Dahmen, who only conceded seven goals in 2025. In general, the defensive is the largest trump card of a squad that gets the optimum out of its possibilities. In contrast to Borussia Dortmund.