Gotze hails Dortmund improvement

Midfielder Mario Gotze feels Borussia Dortmund rose to the challenge in the Champions League, after failing to make an impact last term.

The Bundesliga champions beat Ajax 4-1 at the Amsterdam Arena on Wednesday to secure top spot in Group D, and Gotze stressed the difference from last season was that they performed at the big moments this time around.

“The Champions League is a very big challenge, and you need to rise to the occasion. We managed to do that, we stood up at the decisive moments and were efficient. That’s the difference from last season,” Gotze told the UEFA website.

“We were drawn in a very difficult group, but we simply looked forward to the opponents and the matches. And you could see that we wanted to make up for last year. I think that we did very well in that sense.

“Whether it was against Real Madrid or Manchester City or here against Ajax, we produced a very good team performance, and we are delighted to finish top of the group. We are also looking forward to the upcoming games.”

Borussia Dortmund will resume Bundesliga action on Saturday when they travel to Mainz.