Jurgen Klopp has vowed to fix Borussia Dortmund’s dire Bundesliga form following their fourth straight league defeat with leaders Bayern Munich lying in wait.
Dortmund have yet to concede a goal in the Champions League with three straight wins after Wednesday’s impressive 4-0 victory at Galatasaray and are top of Group D ahead of Arsenal, but are in free-fall in the Bundesliga.
Borussia can book their place in the knock-out phase of Europe when they host Galatasaray in the return leg, but they are winless in their last six German league games.
Hannover’s 1-0 win at Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion on Saturday saw Dortmund drop to 15th in the table, just a point above the relegation zone, in their worst start to the season in nearly three decades.
Bundesliga leaders Bayern host Dortmund in Munich next Saturday in Germany’s “Der Klassiker” and Borussia have a potential banana skin at second division St Pauli on Tuesday in the second round of the German Cup.
“We have to keep going, keep fighting – and ensure that we no longer feel like this after games,” fumed Dortmund coach Klopp after the Hannover defeat.
“We turned all the screws and still we’re left empty-handed. That’s tough.
“All of us have a huge responsibility, which we have to meet.
“We can’t do more, but we can do things better.
“We aren’t in a good situation in the Bundesliga and that’s something we haven’t come to terms with until now.
“We’ll continue to fight. The opponent made a lot out of little, we made nothing out of a lot.”
Dortmund failed to beat 10 men as Hannover had Turkey midfielder Ceyhun Guelselam sent off for fouling Germany winger Marco Reus on 89 minutes.
Klopp is under contract until 2017 and Dortmund CEO Hans-Watzke has said the 47-year-old has a job guarantee until then.
But current results, losing to the likes of Schalke, Hamburg, Cologne and now Hannover, will do little to help the renegotiate the expiring contracts of Germany stars Reus and Ilkay Gundogan, obvious targets for Europe’s top clubs.
Next season’s Champions League place is under serious threat unless league results dramatically improve.
Watzke has said financially they can cope without a season in Europe’s most lucrative competition, but their top players will be vulnerable to better offers.
Dortmund have a history of losing their best player at the end of each recent season.
In 2011, defensive midfielder Nuri Sahin left for Real Madrid, only to return after an unhappy stint in Spain, then Liverpool, while a year later playmaker Shinji Kagawa departed for Manchester United.
Both eventually returned, but neither has recaptured the previous form they showed in Dortmund while Sahin is currently injured.
In 2013, World Cup winner Mario Gotze actioned a release clause in his contract to join Bayern for 37 million euros, soon to be followed in Bavaria by striker Robert Lewandowski who refused to renew his Dortmund deal.
Klopp has struggled to integrate recent signings Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Adrian Ramos and Ciro Immobile into his 4-2-3-1 system.
But there seems to be deeper lying psychological problems as Dortmund repeatedly fail to recapture their stunning European form on their return to the Bundesliga.
“There is a mental blockage in their heads. The Bundesliga defeats don’t show the quality of the team,” ex-Germany captain Lothar Matthaus told Sky Sports.
“They have to throw the switch and focus again on doing their homework in the Bundesliga.”
But that is easier said than done and Dortmund have yet to meet four of the top six Bundesliga teams with Klopp all too aware that help is not at hand.
“No one is going to help us in the coming weeks, we have to sort this out alone,” he said.
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Results
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group 1 (PA) US$75,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Ziyadd, Richard Mullen (jockey), Jean de Roualle (trainer).
7.05pm: Al Rashidiya Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (Turf) 1,800m
Winner: Barney Roy, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
7.40pm: Meydan Cup Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,810m
Winner: Secret Advisor, Tadhg O’Shea, Charlie Appleby.
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Plata O Plomo, Carlos Lopez, Susanne Berneklint.
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
9.25pm: Al Shindagha Sprint Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Gladiator King, Mickael Barzalona, Satish Seemar.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
COMPANY PROFILE
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The White Lotus: Season three
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On sale: now
Multitasking pays off for money goals
Tackling money goals one at a time cost financial literacy expert Barbara O'Neill at least $1 million.
That's how much Ms O'Neill, a distinguished professor at Rutgers University in the US, figures she lost by starting saving for retirement only after she had created an emergency fund, bought a car with cash and purchased a home.
"I tell students that eventually, 30 years later, I hit the million-dollar mark, but I could've had $2 million," Ms O'Neill says.
Too often, financial experts say, people want to attack their money goals one at a time: "As soon as I pay off my credit card debt, then I'll start saving for a home," or, "As soon as I pay off my student loan debt, then I'll start saving for retirement"."
People do not realise how costly the words "as soon as" can be. Paying off debt is a worthy goal, but it should not come at the expense of other goals, particularly saving for retirement. The sooner money is contributed, the longer it can benefit from compounded returns. Compounded returns are when your investment gains earn their own gains, which can dramatically increase your balances over time.
"By putting off saving for the future, you are really inhibiting yourself from benefiting from that wonderful magic," says Kimberly Zimmerman Rand , an accredited financial counsellor and principal at Dragonfly Financial Solutions in Boston. "If you can start saving today ... you are going to have a lot more five years from now than if you decide to pay off debt for three years and start saving in year four."
LAST-16 FIXTURES
Sunday, January 20
3pm: Jordan v Vietnam at Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
6pm: Thailand v China at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: Iran v Oman at Mohamed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Monday, January 21
3pm: Japan v Saudi Arabia at Sharjah Stadium
6pm: Australia v Uzbekistan at Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: UAE v Kyrgyzstan at Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tuesday, January 22
5pm: South Korea v Bahrain at Rashid Stadium, Dubai
8pm: Qatar v Iraq at Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi
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