Optimism has returned to Signal Iduna Park. As Borussia Dortmund embark on a fresh campaign, there is a palpable sense that this club is not merely going through the motions of reconstruction but actively reclaiming an identity that had slipped away. Head coach Niko Kovac articulates this vision with clarity at the club's training ground.
Overall, we are mixing a good team. Four players left. We bought some new talented players and also one experienced player. So we kept the spine, the experienced players, the goalkeeper, the centre-back, the midfielder. And now we are trying to create the BVB, I would say, from the past.
This philosophy harks back to the electrifying football that once captivated supporters on the Yellow Wall—the sort of attacking verve and pressing intensity that defined the Jürgen Klopp era. The blueprint calls for counter-pressing dominance over possession control, a style infused with emotional intensity rather than calculated safety.
In recent seasons, Dortmund had drifted from these core principles. The club's transfer strategy had tilted towards established names, a defensive posture designed to secure Champions League football above all else. It was pragmatic, perhaps, but it was not Dortmund.
The New Arrivals
The experienced addition Kovac references is Joey Veerman, a 27-year-old midfielder recruited from PSV Eindhoven. Yet it is the signing of two Greek wingers that has captured the imagination of the fanbase: the dynamic Giannis Konstantelias and 18-year-old prospect Konstantin Karetsas, both representing the sort of raw talent the club is banking on to drive this new chapter.
During the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup on 22 August 2026, Konstantelias provided a glimpse of what might be possible. When he entered the fray in the second half against Bayern Munich, he immediately began probing the opposition defence with pace and purpose. Dortmund mounted a spirited comeback attempt from two goals down, though ultimately fell short in a 2-1 defeat.
Julian Ryerson, the experienced Norwegian full-back, offered his assessment of the new recruits following that encounter.
It looks positive, yeah. We also had some good players last year but I hope it takes us to a new level, of course. I hope and I think that we are on a good path.
The departures have been significant. Karim Adeyemi and Julian Brandt, both proven performers in black and yellow, have moved on. According to Sportschau, Adeyemi has joined FC Barcelona, Brandt has transferred to Ajax Amsterdam, and Salih Özcan has moved to Besiktas. The goal-scoring burden that these players carried must now be redistributed.
We need to replace these goals, it is clear. Of course, when you buy new players, you never know if it is going to work or not.
Yet Kovac sees possibility in this uncertainty.
Our expectations are high because we saw that, especially the offensive players, the two Greek ones, they have a big talent.
Kovac's Credentials and Philosophy
The question of whether Kovac possesses the tactical sophistication to unlock this potential remains open. He is a proven winner—a cup champion with Eintracht Frankfurt and a double-winner at Bayern Munich—yet his methods have occasionally drawn criticism for prioritising work-rate over creative flair. His recent experiments with inverted wing-backs suggest a willingness to evolve, though his innovations rarely generate the same analytical fascination as those of peers like Vincent Kompany at Bayern.
When asked to define his footballing identity, Kovac offers a disarmingly straightforward answer: successful football. It is difficult to argue with the results, yet he acknowledges that his particular approach can appear limited when measured against more celebrated contemporaries.
If someone likes my style, this is up to you. For me, we are successful. And I think that, together, since we arrived, we did a very good job. As a coach, I think you need to see what kind of players you have, what situation you have, and you must always adapt.
The Rescue Mission of January 2025
Kovac's appointment in late January 2025 came at a moment of genuine crisis. Dortmund were languishing in the wrong half of the Bundesliga table, their identity fractured and European qualification appearing a distant prospect. The club had lost its way entirely.
His immediate intervention proved transformative. Carsten Cramer, Dortmund's chief executive, remains visibly grateful for what Kovac achieved in those early months.
Imagine what happened when we hired him one-and-a-half years ago. We were in regions we never should be and he brought us to the Champions League.
Cramer's confidence in the coach's long-term fit is emphatic.
He is committed. He loves to work for the club. Black and yellow fits him, I would say, much better than the red and white [of Bayern] or the green and white [of Wolfsburg]. I am 100 per cent sure that he is the right man at the right moment.
Tactical Adjustments and Physical Transformation
Upon arrival, Kovac inherited a squad that had been constructed with a back-four system in mind. Within weeks, he recognised the structural mismatch.
I arrived in a bad situation. The squad was planned with a back four, but after two or three games we saw it was not working so we changed into the back five.
Yet the tactical shift was only part of the solution. Kovac identified a deeper problem: the physical conditioning of the players did not align with his vision of what modern football demands.
What was also obvious was that the physical capacities, how I see football, how I see a fully fit player, was not there. So we worked on this. With those physical abilities you're immediately a better football player.
His reasoning is elegant in its simplicity. When players possess genuine fitness, decision-making becomes instinctive rather than laboured.
Without those physical abilities, you are calculating. Should I run backwards? Should I run forward? Should I defend? Should I attack? If you are fitter, you just do it.
The implementation proved challenging. Old habits resurface when systems are not yet embedded, and the transition demanded patience. Yet the results vindicated the approach. Dortmund finished fourth in that truncated campaign, then climbed to second place in the following season.
Closing the Gap to Bayern
The numerical gap to Bayern Munich tells a story of progress but also of the mountain still to climb. At the end of Kovac's first season, Dortmund trailed by 25 points. Last term, that deficit narrowed to 16 points. The trajectory is encouraging, yet a title challenge remains a considerable distance away.
To close this gap, a lot must happen. It is also important that Bayern Munich is not playing top.
Recent history has shown that opportunities do emerge. Dortmund squandered a title on the final day in 2023, and Bayer Leverkusen ended Bayern's dominance in 2024. The window for success, though narrow, is not sealed shut.
The hope now rests on a fusion of Kovac's disciplined framework with the ceiling of potential represented by the new talent. If the Greek wingers develop as hoped, if Veerman's experience steadies the midfield, and if the collective fitness and pressing intensity reach the levels Kovac demands, then perhaps another opportunity will present itself.
I do not like to speak first and then work. I think the opposite way is better.
What Comes Next
Dortmund's Bundesliga campaign begins in earnest on 29 August 2026, when they host Hamburger SV at Signal Iduna Park in the opening weekend fixture. According to ESPN, this marks the start of their 2026–27 league challenge. The pre-season has included friendlies against Arsenal on 9 August and AS Roma on 15 August, providing Kovac with opportunities to assess his squad's readiness.
The Supercup defeat to Bayern, while disappointing, offered valuable data. The performance of Konstantelias in particular suggested that the investment in youth talent may yet prove justified. The coming weeks will reveal whether Dortmund's gamble on potential, combined with Kovac's proven ability to extract maximum value from his players, can reignite the club's title ambitions.
