Dortmund defender Süle flags up a lack of intensity in Bundesliga after Champions League success
DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — Borussia Dortmund has thrived on the Champions League stage against Paris Saint-Germain, AC Milan and Newcastle. Now comes the tricky part — Augsburg away on a Saturday afternoon.
After Wednesday's 1-1 draw with PSG ensured Dortmund finished on top of what was arguably the Champions League's most difficult group, defender Niklas Süle admitted the team has lacked the same intensity in some Bundesliga games.
“We’ve had the problem fairly often this season, that we’ve showed a different dynamic in the Champions League, a different kind of will. It’s not always possible to explain," Süle told broadcaster DAZN.
“Here (at Dortmund's 81,000-capacity stadium), 9 p.m., the floodlights, against the best in Europe, I don’t think there’s anyone in the team who isn’t motivated all the way.” The Dortmund players “have ourselves to blame” if that same drive hasn't been apparent in domestic games, he added.
Dortmund topped its Champions League group but in the Bundesliga Edin Terzic's team is fifth and 11 points off leader Bayer Leverkusen.
Süle was a standout performer against PSG, sliding at full stretch to keep out a Kylian Mbappe shot headed for goal. In the Bundesliga, though, the Dortmund defense has not gone a full game without conceding a goal since Oct. 20.
In nearly two months since then, Dortmund has earned five points from six Bundesliga games, conceded 15 goals in total, and was knocked out of the German Cup by Stuttgart, too.
So is Dortmund raising its game for the Champions League, underperforming in Germany, or both?
There have certainly been no easy games in recent weeks as Dortmund lost to Bayern Munich and Leipzig and drew with leader Bayer Leverkusen. Stuttgart is flying high in third place and far exceeding expectations, but Dortmund has still lost twice to a team it would normally be expected to beat.
Dortmund heads to ninth-placed Augsburg on Saturday and then to relegation-threatened Mainz on Tuesday for its last two league games before the winter break.
Sporting director Sebastian Kehl was dismissive of Süle's suggestion that the Champions League occasion made much difference.
“That shouldn’t play any role for a Bundesliga player, for a player for Borussia Dortmund. This competition (the Champions League) is obviously special but we know that we now need to deliver in the Bundesliga, too," Kehl told DAZN.
"The expectation is that we win both of those games (against Augsburg and Mainz), that we take the same brave approach and the same intensity on that day as we had today, and hopefully we’ll improve our situation in the Bundesliga table.”
After Bayern was stunned 5-1 by Eintracht Frankfurt last week, Leverkusen is the last remaining unbeaten team in any of Europe's main five national leagues. Its lead over Bayern stands at four points, though Bayern has one game extra to play.
It's Leverkusen's turn to take on Frankfurt on Sunday, seeking a win after back-to-back draws with Dortmund and Stuttgart.
After beating Manchester United 1-0 on Tuesday, Bayern takes on Stuttgart in a game that will test whether Stuttgart truly belongs in the battle for the Champions League places.
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