Klopp: Blame me for Dortmund slump

Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp has insisted that he is to blame for the Bundesliga giants’ recent poor form.

Last season’s runners-up slumped to a surprising 1-0 home defeat to strugglers Hamburg at Signal Iduna Park on Saturday.

Dortmund were disappointing throughout, and despite a late siege of the Hamburg goal, they managed just four shots on target in 90 minutes.

They have now lost three of their last four league games, falling to 13th in the fledging Bundesliga standings.

And Klopp, who has enjoyed consistent success with Dortmund since joining in 2008, was adamant that the blame lies squarely at his feet, although he also said the players must step up.

“The shoe I put on me. I am responsible for the preparation and adjustment of the guys,” the 47-year-old said in his post-match press conference.

“Our problem is we can’t get a stable shape or hold onto the ball.

“There are explanations for our problems. We have played far too little football.

“We need to now endure every criticism that comes and some guys need to assess their performance.”

Hamburg headed into the fixture sitting bottom of the Bundesliga pile and having scored just one goal since the season kicked-off in August.

But Josef Zinnbauer’s men dominated the early stages and were rewarded when Nicolai Muller laid the ball on a plate for Pierre-Michel Lasogga to score.

Dortmund were unable to muster a strong response and Klopp believes the upcoming international break will help his side refocus as they look to begin closing a 10-point gap to Bayern Munich,

“We must use these two weeks; today is the low point and the start for the rest of the season,” Klopp maintained.

“Of course it is not good to be so far behind Bayern. This is a very unusual situation but it will help us to be better.”