The factors that helped Dortmund rise up

Dortmund is currently second in the Bundesliga. The yellow and black shirt team has the same 43 points as Bayern and Union Berlin, but is less than Bayern in the difference.

After a 2-4 defeat to Moenchengladbach on 11/11/2022, which dropped them to sixth in the Bundesliga and nine points behind Bayern, even the most optimistic Dortmund fans could hardly have predicted the home team would join the group. leading only a month since the tournament returned after the 2022 World Cup. However, the team's explosive form made a fresh start. Dortmund are currently the only team in Europe's top 10 leagues to have won all of them since the beginning of 2023. That circuit includes six Bundesliga matches and 19 goals, a German Cup match and the first leg of the Champions League round of 16.

Bellingham also impresses with maturity before his time. In the wins against Leverkusen 2-0 in the Bundesliga and Chelsea 1-0 in the first leg of the 1/8 Champions League round, the young English star wore the captain's armband.

Julian Brandt also left his mark behind Dortmund's rise. The 26-year-old winger is having his best season since moving from Leverkusen in the summer of 2019. The goal to seal a 4-1 win over Hertha was Brandt's third in three consecutive Bundesliga games. "Brandt doesn't just run, it gives power," coach Edin Terzic said of the Bundesliga's January player of the month. "He's taken a step forward in terms of play."

Karim Adeyemi is also a symbol in Dortmund's sublimation momentum. From nowhere in the first half of the Bundesliga season, the 21-year-old winger scored three goals in the last four matches. Adeyemi also scored one goal in the National Cup and two in the Champions League. In the first leg of the 1/8 Champions League round, it was this former Salzburg player who hit Chelsea after a classy solo phase.

According to the Bundesliga homepage, Dortmund fans cannot help but mention the efforts of Marco Reus. It's no coincidence that three of Dortmund's six Bundesliga defeats this season have come during a time when Reus has suffered a right ankle problem. After returning from the beginning of 2023, the 33-year-old winger immediately regained his peak form. In the 4-1 win over Hertha, Reus contributed an assist and a free kick. "We can't give up even an inch in the coming weeks," Reus said. "Everybody wants to win the title."

Besides the Bundesliga, Dortmund are also present in the quarterfinals of the German National Cup. If they can protect their 1-0 advantage over Chelsea in the second leg of the 1/8 round, they will enter the quarter-finals of the Champions League.