Pragmatic rather than spectacular: BVB is in a much better position than it was a year ago, but still faces criticism. Coach Kovac remains calm and rotates his lineup in the Champions League.

Coach Niko Kovac can’t seem to shake the debate over Borussia Dortmund’s playing style as the year draws to a close. In the third consecutive “English week,” BVB’s approach in the Champions League will once again be closely scrutinized on Wednesday (9:00 p.m./DAZN) against FK Bodø/Glimt from Norway. The topic came up again the day before the sixth group stage match. Dull, unimaginative, soporific: That’s how critics describe the style of soccer Dortmund plays under Kovac.

Julian Brandt offered a balanced assessment of his coach’s pragmatic approach on Tuesday. “We’ve found a foundation for ourselves to be successful,” said the 29-year-old attacking midfielder. His coach sat beside him, smiling calmly. “He can feel vindicated,” Brandt continued, referring to Kovac’s approach and training methods.

Previously, comments Brandt made after Dortmund’s 2-0 win over Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga on Sunday had caused a stir. “To be honest, that’s not my style of playing soccer. Sometimes I just have to accept that,” Brandt said, explicitly referring only to the game against Hoffenheim. However, the criticism that Dortmund plays too unspectacularly and lacks creativity up front is nothing new.

“I’ve been in the game for quite a while now. Minorities don’t make majorities. I still believe we’re on the right track,” Kovac said, as calm as ever, in response to the sweeping criticism. Their success proves him right. “Overall, we’re super satisfied. I’ve been in very different situations here in the final weeks of the year before, with only ten healthy players and 22 points from 15 or 16 games,” Brandt added.

BVB is in a much better position than it was a year ago

Currently, BVB is in third place in the league with 28 points from 13 games and has seven more points than at the same time last year. Admittedly, the cup elimination in the round of 16 against Bayer Leverkusen is frustrating. But in the Champions League, Dortmund can take a big step toward direct qualification for the round of 16 against the Norwegian underdog Bodø/Glimt. “Basically, we could put ourselves in a very, very good position,” Brandt said regarding the situation ahead of the sixth of eight matches in the group stage.

“Of course, there are two more decisive games coming up in January, but the goal is definitely to finish in the top eight,” Brandt continued. That would spare the team additional playoff matches in February. And he didn’t shy away from acknowledging that the current workload is also a reason for the team’s occasional lackluster play. “The back-to-back weeks play a role here. When the eleventh and twelfth back-to-back weeks come around in December, it starts to take its toll,” Brandt said.

Coach Kovac is constantly rotating the lineup, which in turn ensures that certain patterns in the game don’t become automatic too quickly. Against the dethroned Norwegian champions, the rotation will continue, possibly on an even larger scale. “Everyone is healthy. Theoretically, eleven substitutions would be possible,” said Kovac, but he also emphasized: “We want to win tomorrow’s game, no matter who plays.” A bit of excitement certainly wouldn’t hurt to bring some more Christmas peace to the atmosphere.