Borussia Dortmund Season Shouldn’t Be Considered As A Failure

Borussia Dortmund ended the 2018/19 season in second place of the Bundesliga, but several were quite sad once the campaign ended. Since BVB spent most of the campaign at the top of the standings, finishing the year empty handed certainly felt like a disappointment for the German giants’ fanbase.

However, fans shouldn’t feel like that. In fact, not even one person associated with Borussia Dortmund should feel this season was a wasted year. In fact, this could be a huge year for the future of the club since they proved they can go toe-to-toe with Bayern. Something that was quite unlikely just 12 months ago.

A team built for the future

It only takes a look at the squad to see this club has a bright future ahead of themselves. Despite losing key players over the past few years, Dortmund remain both competitive and consistent. But this year, they’ve done it with several young players as first-team regulars. Some of the ones who stood out were Jadon Sancho (12 goals, 14 assists), Achraf Hakimi (four assists as a right-back) and Paco Alcácer (18 goals). All three are 25 years old or younger.

Things are even more impressive if we look at their defensive line. Dan-Axel Zagadou is 19. Abdou Diallo is 23. Hakimi is 20, and Manuel Akanji is also 23. In this context, Raphael Guerreiro would be a “veteran” despite being only 25.

Out of the first-term regulars, only Thomas Delaney (27), Marco Reus (29) and Axel Witsel (30) can be considered as “in-prime” players. But the rest of the squad is filled with players who should hit the peak of their form in future seasons. And we haven’t even mentioned some of the players out on loan such as Alexander Isak. The Swedish forward is 19 years old, and scored 13 goals in 16 Eredivisie appearances with Willem II.

Sure, Dortmund would’ve liked to go deeper in the Champions League. They would’ve also liked to win the Bundesliga title. But they shouldn’t feel disappointed. This year will be a huge lesson for Dortmund, and they will be even stronger – and better – next season.