Borussia Dortmund fans would have been forgiven for watching Germany’s impressive 2-0 victory over France on Saturday and wondering how such a performance inadvertently reflected on the current malaise engulfing their club. It was a result that much of the Bundesliga can rightfully be proud of but also, unfortunately, one in which Edin Terzic and his team played very little role in.
Indeed, the starting line up consisted of two Bayern Munich players, two Bayer Leverkusen players and an impressive left-back from Stuttgart. And throughout the game another three players from the aforementioned Swabian club joined the festivities, while the elder Bavarian statesman himself, Thomas Müller, was brought on to see out the result in the second half.
In fact, the only representative from Dortmund was Niclas Füllkrug, who was brought on 10 minutes before full time. And, considering the manner in which Kai Havertz has been shifted to the No. 9 role in Julian Nagelsmann’s team, it seems increasingly unlikely that the Dortmund striker will be anything but an option off the bench at Euro 2024.
Of course, Dortmund’s success in domestic football can’t be weighed in international caps for the German national team. But, nonetheless, it is just the latest finger to be pointed at the substandard job that Terzic seems to be doing at the Westfalenstadion this summer. Nagelsmann would never dare criticise a fellow head coach in public, but his decision to overlook Nico Schlotterbeck, Julian Brandt, Emre Can, Mats Hummels, Marco Reus and Niklas Süle was as damning as any remark made in front of the bright lights and microphones of the Parc Olympique Lyonnais media room that night.
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