Borussia Dortmund - A Future Brighter Than Ever

Fans have spent months wondering how the future will pan out without their beloved Turkish sensation. Writers have mused galore on a system without the diminutive Japanese midfielder. Bandwagoners have stayed away from the black and yellow because life without the most prodigious German talent seemed to lack glory.

Yet Borussia Dortmund have managed to enthrall the world over the past four seasons. Theyai??i??ve dealt with losses like no other. Nuri Sahin traded black and yellow for the fabled white of Madrid but it didnai??i??t deter Dortmund. Ilkay GA?ndogan seamlessly entered the fray, even managing to go a step further than his predecessor by making headlines in Europeai??i??s biggest club competition.

Shinji Kagawa and Lucas Barrios left for more lucrative deals but new faces bettered the clubai??i??s performances. When Mario GAi??tze left, Marco Reus decided to lift his game to a whole new level. And weai??i??ve now reached the point of the next transition ai??i?? A Dortmund without Robert Lewandowski.

But the departures of the past have taught us one thing. JA?rgen Kloppai??i??s Dortmund is a side that thrives on change. Every new arrival, as different as may be from his predecessor, provides a breath of fresh air, a new form of unpredictability. Also, every addition has seen the system tweaked by a miniscule amount, yet the over result has remained the same.

Lewandowski was nothing like Barrios, yet they have both performed admirably for systems that look very similar to the naked eye. On paper Sahin and GA?ndogan arenai??i??t similar by any stretch of imagination, yet theyai??i??ve both replaced each other perfectly fine. From Kagawa to GAi??tze to Mkhitaryan, the differences were innumerable but the end product unique ai??i?? Beautiful football.

Lewandowskiai??i??s replacement as of now, Adrian Ramos, is probably the closest match when one looks at previous such predicaments. Ramos is the new mould striker ai??i?? hard working, good at carrying the ball from deeper positions and a fairly good finisher. But he still hasnai??i??t proven himself at a stage like that on which the Pole has but he hasnai??i??t worked with a system as friendly as that of Kloppai??i??s either. While Ramos isnai??i??t going to be Lewandowski 2.0, he should work efficiently in this Dortmund system.

For once, Ramos isnai??i??t going to be Kloppai??i??s only clear cut replacement choice. Augsburgai??i??s Dong Won Ji is set to arrive at the club this summer on a free transfer. While he may not boast of the numbers that Ramos does, Ji will provide a new dimension to Dortmundai??i??s attack. Thereai??i??s also the possibility of Pierre Emerick Aubameyang being used more as a striker next season. Letai??i??s not forget that the Gabonese speedster thrived as the main man up front at Saint Etienne. Finally, thereai??i??s Julian Schiber. While the former Stuttgart man seems the most unlikely of choices to replace Lewandowski, the magical ability of Klopp cannot be underestimated.

While the Lewandowski-replacement problem seems to be solved satisfactorily with what is available at the moment, the addition of another face or two to buck up this attack seems likely. Be it Ciro Immobile, Shinji Kagawa or yet another unknown gem unearthed by Klopp and Co., Dortmundai??i??s attack is surely headed in the right direction.

If Lewandowskiai??i??s departure seems bad, the injury crisis that the club suffered was like hell on earth. It may have drastically hurt Dortmundai??i??s chances of silverware and made things a lot harder than usual for the Ruhr side but it has also had a good effect. Signings like Milos Jojic and Manuel Friedrich would never have been made were it not for the barrage of injuries, thereby leaving the club susceptible to a similar crisis in a season where the usual replacement procedure may have been a lot harder.

Jojic has now managed to prove himself as a more than worthy addition, while Friedrichai??i??s experience will always come in handy. All that these two have two offer will only be a plus point for the club in the future as Klopp continues to build Dortmund into a regular European powerhouse.

The names of Jonas Hoffmann and Erik Durm would have remained unknown had it not been for this crisis. The excessive use of Marcel Schmelzer would have continued had he not picked up regular injuries and Durm may well have been shipped off due to a lack of playing time. Mkhitaryanai??i??s time on the side line early on was a blessing in disguise as it gave Hoffmann the chance to prove his worth and ensure a future at the Signal Iduna Park. Once again, both names will be hugely useful if Dortmund are to be successful on three fronts.

The importance of quality and depth in a squad cannot be understated but the most important factor in keeping this Dortmund side running the way it has been is JA?rgen Klopp. He has transformed their style of play, their mindset, their image in the world of football. He has resurrected a growing force of the 90ai??i??s and made them the most exciting side in European football today.

Any pre-existing worries of Kloppai??i??s departure to the Premier League amidst all the goodbyes being said in England over the past year have been put to rest. Klopp recently confirmed that he will honour his contract with Dortmund, which lasts till 2018, thus dispelling any rumors of a premature exit. His loyalty has made one thing clear; his love for the club is unerring. This isnai??i??t just a project for today, itai??i??s a story being built so it shall be remembered and can be furthered in the years to come.

With the Klopp-Dortmund romance continuing, the incoming quality remaining a constant and the squad depth increasing, it seems like the next season will be a whole lot better than the current one. Trophies will come aplenty over the next few years and hearts shall continue to be won.

Borussia Dortmund – A Future Brighter Than Ever

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