Apparently Kovac still wants to play with Guirassy

> The national and international schedule has meant that Borussia Dortmund has spent many hours on buses, planes, and in hotels in recent weeks. BVB have played six of their last seven games away from home, including in Copenhagen and Manchester. Until Christmas, it will now be almost exactly the opposite: six of the remaining eight games this year will take place in Dortmund, starting with the match against VfB Stuttgart on Saturday (3:30 p.m., LIVE! on kicker).

> What does that mean for Niko Kovac and his team? “We have less travel stress, we can make better use of our time, have more training sessions and sleep in our own beds,” the coach explains. Added to that, of course, is the advantage of playing in our own stadium. “That’s quite a factor,” believes Kovac: “It’s important for us, but it also has significance for our opponents. We want to use it to our advantage to get as many points as possible at home in order to establish ourselves in all competitions.”

> The added freshness of their own bedrooms and the extra motivation provided by the Westfalenstadion living room should also help to counteract the recent lack of creativity in attack. Fewer chances, fewer goals, fewer points – even if the trips are “a fact,” as Kovac emphasizes, he is self-critical: “We can do much better up front. Every single player is called upon to do this, not just the strikers.“ It’s about ”accuracy, clever passes, and good control so that we can make better use of the situation,“ says the coach, adding: ”We’re sloppy in that regard.”

> Kovac therefore admits that his team is a little sloppy. However, this clearly does not apply to the medical and fitness work behind the scenes. With the exception of Niklas Süle, who is still struggling with a toe injury, Kovac has his entire squad available for Saturday, with even the national team players “all back to full fitness.”

> This starting position is “what every coach, every athletic trainer, and every doctor wants,” says Kovac: “The competition is fierce, every single player is under pressure, and my decisions will be tough.” He already has his sights set on the entire block of the last eight games until the end of the year: “Every single one will be important there.”

> There will be rotation, especially in midfield. Otherwise, the Croatian outlines his approach so far in his tenure: “Gregor is always in goal, Serhou Guirassy always in attack, and Nico Schlotterbeck and Waldemar Anton play in defense.” Only in the center is “it a little different,” he explains: “When everyone is healthy, we have to manage training and games. Because fatigue carries a high risk of injury.” At least his players are currently allowed to sleep at home more often again.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

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