BVB aiming to finish the job against Holstein Kiel | OneFootball

Niko Kovac's team have put themselves – or rather, Niko Kovac has put the team – in a position that would have been hardly conceivable weeks ago. After the 2-0 defeat in Leipzig on Matchday 26, they dropped down to 11th place in the table and were 10 points and 10 goals adrift of a berth in the Champions League. Now, eight weeks later, they have the outcome of a turbulent season in their own hands.

They might "only" be in fifth place following Matchday 33, but fourth-placed Freiburg and third-placed Frankfurt will go head-to-head next weekend. They will therefore overtake one of their two rivals if they claim a victory against Kiel – unless they beat the relegated club from Schleswig-Holstein by a margin of only one goal and Frankfurt also lose by only one goal in Freiburg. In all other scenarios, Borussia Dortmund will overtake either Sportclub or Eintracht.

Leipzig was the turning point, Leverkusen the penultimate step. How similar were those games, by the way? Back on that cold March evening, BVB registered 25 shots at Leipzig's goal (xG of 3.06) but could not get the better of keeper Peter Gulacsi and lost by a margin of two goals (2-0). Yesterday, on a warm spring afternoon in Leverkusen, Bayer had 19 shots at goal (xG of 2.20) but were denied for the most part by shot-stopper Gregor Kobel and lost by a two-goal margin (4-2).

"I'm of course happy that I was able to help the team," said goalkeeper Gregor Kobel, who saved nine opposition shots in a single match for the second time in his career. "But that's what I'm there for," added the Swiss custodian.

Kobel held firm, while up front Julian Brandt, Julian Ryerson, Karim Adeyemi and Serhou Guirassy finished clinically and extended a remarkable goalscoring run. In eight of their last nine matches against Mainz 05 (3-1), SC Freiburg (4-1), Bayern Munich (2-2), FC Barcelona (3-1), Borussia Mönchengladbach (3-2), TSG Hoffenheim (3-2), VfL Wolfsburg (4-0) und Bayer Leverkusen (4-2), Borussia Dortmund have scored 26 goals. That's an average of more than three per game. Since then, the distance covered has consistently been above the 120-kilometre mark (with one exception: 119.7km in the game against Wolfsburg). On average, Borussia Dortmund have covered 121.5 kilometres per match since Leipzig, making them the hardest-running team in the league in that time.

"The coach kicked our arses," declared Karim Adeyemi boldly, adding: "He told us that we had to run, regardless of the opponent. And that it would then be very difficult for the others with our quality and our style of play. I have to be honest: it helped me. I feel fitter, and the cramps aren't happening anymore either." Gregor Kobel cited another aspect: consistency. "He doesn't let much get past him, which is a good thing," said the Swiss of his coach. Sporting director Sebastian Kehl said the following of the upturn in form: "We have tried to improve in all areas, to play more intense football and to defend more courageously on the front foot too. We're following a clear plan that the coach has given the lads." But what have also been very important for Kehl are the results. "I know from my own experience: you grow together with victories."

The team still has one final step to take in order to end a season, which was successful on the international stage with a quarter-final appearance, on a positive note domestically too. Or, as Julian Brandt put it: "To finish off the season as smoothly as possible." With the exception of long-term injury absentee Nico Schlotterbeck and Pascal Groß, who was one of five Borussia players who went into the game in Leverkusen on four yellow cards but is fortunately the only one suspended, the team is expected to line up against Holstein Kiel at full strength and to make amends. The reverse fixture in mid-January, which ended in a 4-2 defeat, was a low point in a season of ups and downs. This time against Kiel, the aim will be to finish on a high.Boris Rupert