Niko Kovac finally admits something which fans have been raging at for months!

Borussia Dortmund’s long unbeaten run ended on a whimper on Wednesday after Bodo/Glimt beat them 1-0 in the Champions League.

The BVB were punished for a sloppy and lackluster display at the Aspmyra Stadium as Fredrik Sjovold struck in the 52nd minute to hand Superlaget a narrow win.

Niko Kovac made a few surprise changes to his lineup, resting some of his first-team stars such as Serhou Guirassy, Marcel Sabitzer, Felix Nmecha and Ethan Nwaneri.

While he may have taken the decision to manage their workload, it backfired spectacularly with Dortmund cutting a toothless figure going forward.

Their defense was in complete shambles on the night too, with Bodo relying on wide players to create attacking moments.

Unsurprisingly then, their match-winning goal also came from the flank, with Sondre Auklend barging into the area from the right before cutting it back for Sjovold to finish from close-range.

Looking dejected after the clash, Kovac admitted his side were caught napping until they trailed, but also highlighting two important traits missing from their game:

“We weren’t even in the game until we conceded the goal. In the first half, we lacked passion and intensity. We didn’t play the kind of football that is needed in order to win here.”
That passion and intensity which Kovac spoke of last night, is something that fans have been pointing out to since matchday one in the Bundesliga.

Dortmund may have been picking up results, but were doing so rather fortuitously, relying on individual moments of brilliance or on substitutes to pull a rabbit out of their hat.

I, for one, even wrote an extended article critiquing the lack of a solid gameplan and how it may win games, but won’t win trophies.

The Bodo/Glimt loss could be seen as a first reminder. Against quality oppositions, the BVB will be exposed as they were last night.

They had nine shots, but created just one big chance despite completing 583 passes, and finished with an xG of 0.79.

On far too many occasions, there was just no resistance from Dortmund’s defense and midfield, allowing Bodo to just run through them unchallenged.

Kovac further added how substitutions changed the game’s tempo but felt the loss was deserved nonetheless.

“It wasn’t until the four substitutions that we found our way into the game better and took control. Up to that point, though, the opposition was clearly the better side. We deserved to lose the game.”
The loss ends Dortmund’s seven-game unbeaten run in all competitions since starting their season with a 2-1 loss against Bayern Munich in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup.