Borussia Dortmund vs Mainz
Bundesliga
Saturday
27th May 2023
Signal Iduna Park
FC Köln can look forward to millions if not Bayern Munich, but Borussia Dortmund becomes champion. An extra reason not to lose on Saturday.
Extra motivation for FC Köln: financial windfall if Dortmund becomes champion
There is little honor to be gained in the rankings for Köln, which will end up in the middle bracket of the Bundesliga. Nevertheless, the club benefits from a result against Bayern. If Dortmund fails to win against Mainz at home, it will depend on Köln’s result in the battle for the championship. If Bayern does not win at Köln, Dortmund will be champion anyway. In that case, Köln can expect an amount with six zeros.
That amount stems from a clause in the deal around Anthony Modeste (photo), who exchanged Köln for Borussia Dortmund last summer.
Trainer Steffen Baumgart indicated that he already had a lot of confidence in a good outcome against Bayern. “Borussia Dortmund (3-2) couldn’t win against us, Leipzig (0-0) couldn’t win against us. Bayern can try, but we will do everything we can to ensure that they don’t win with us either,” Baumgart told Thekenphilosophen podcast. “We play the same against everyone anyway: keep an open mind and then we’ll see what happens. We almost succeeded in Munich (1-1).”
“Haller can become our hero of the season”
Sébastien Haller’s season is one of high peaks and deep valleys. The striker was diagnosed with testicular cancer earlier this season, made a rapid recovery and is now on the verge of becoming champions of Germany with Borussia Dortmund.
Haller himself did not expect to be back on the field so soon. He could not live up to the confidence in him in the first half of the season, but is now worth gold for Dortmund. In eighteen Bundesliga games, Haller was good for nine goals and three assists. This weekend he can become champion of Germany.
“This is still the best story of the season. We are very proud to have him on the field with us. That is not self-evident,” says Dortmund coach Edin Terzic. “It was his will, dedication and positive energy that got him there. And we’re far from done: he can show that he can become our hero of the season. Haller, Adeyemi and Malen scored goals together that we missed so much in the first half of the season. Our fans have pushed us forward. That’s why we want to reward them.”
Dortmund can become champion of Germany for the first time in eleven years this weekend. That also loosens things up at Terzic. “I can say that it is probably the most beautiful match that awaits me. The tension is usually greater the day before than on the day of the match itself. But now it’s not about how I feel, it’s about what I can give the team. As a team we have to be ready to take the last step,” he added.
