Dhe departures for away games in the European Cup are traditionally beautifully staged at Borussia Dortmund, with photos of players in smart shirts and festive club suits. And with a good dose of anticipation on their faces. However, the photo that everyone had been waiting for on Wednesday was not taken at the small airport in Holzwickede. Erling Haaland was absent when the tour group left for the game at Glasgow Rangers, where BVB had to make up a 4-2 deficit from the first leg this Thursday (9 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Europa League and on RTL).
There was great hope that the Norwegian would return after he had trained relatively intensively on Tuesday, but apparently Haaland is still unable to shoot with his left leg without any problems. After the abolition of the away goals rule in Europe, a 2-0 lead is enough for the team to go into extra time, but it is clear that several goals are needed to still make it into the round of 16 in the Europa League.
So coach Marco Rose has to hope for Haaland’s representative, whom he explicitly addressed when he said after the 6-0 win against Borussia Mönchengladbach: “It’s about the reaction to the reaction.” Offensive players like Marco Reus or Julian Brandt in particular tend to join in responding to amazingly good performances to particularly bad plays. As in the spectacle against Mönchengladbach, which followed the dismal performance against Glasgow.
Now the attackers not only have to play a second strong game in a row, they can basically start to fill the Haaland gap. According to everything that is known, the Norwegian will change clubs in the summer, but he is also permanently absent this year. Or he is looking for his form because he has just recovered from an injury.
After the game in Glasgow, Haaland will have missed 15 of the 34 games of the season so far, almost half. But neither Donyell Malen nor Youssoufa Moukoko nor Stefan Tigges have so far taken the chance that has arisen from these many absences. The same applies to Brandt and Thorgan Hazard, who also occupy offensive positions.
And captain Marco Reus fluctuates uncontrollably in his very own cosmos between brilliant and completely ineffective. Nevertheless, before leaving for Glasgow, the captain spoke confidently of a “final”, he was optimistic because BVB had “gained their self-confidence back” with the win on Sunday.
Even better than a small miracle in Glasgow’s Ibrox Park, however, this season would suit BVB if the team collapsed under the energy of 50,000 frenetic spectators and a hard-fighting opponent. Like the 0:4 in Amsterdam, the 1:3 at Sporting Lisbon in the group stage of the Champions League, the 1:2 in the cup at FC St. Pauli or in the first leg against Glasgow.
The teenager Moukoko looks overwhelmed against strong opponents and Malen lacks clarity in his game just like Hazard or Brandt, who said: “I haven’t given up hope yet and neither should anyone else. We are able to score a lot of goals and also keep a clean sheet.” But away wins without Haaland are rare: BVB has only managed this feat in Bielefeld, at Union Berlin and in the cup in Wiesbaden.
