A season that started so spectacularly and promised so much seemed to end on a rather large anti-climax.
Peter Stoger just about did everything he was brought in to do – he had to lift a Dortmund side that was drained in confidence, collapsing under pressure and all in all appeared to have forgotten how to win a match and drag them into the Champions League qualification places.
A 3-1 defeat to Hoffenheim seemed to be the final nail in the coffin for BVB’s Champions League hopes, but other results just about went in their favour and the Yellow’s qualified on goal difference.
But, with Champions League qualification comes hope and this is their time to avenge the many humiliations and disappointments that were so painfully suffered last season.
We picked out the five disasters from 2017/18 that Dortmund must avenge:
#1 The Great Winter Freeze
Peter Bosz’s short reign as Borussia Dortmund manager began in spectacular fashion, with his side winning six out of their first seven league games, scoring 21 goals and only conceding three.
They looked like world beaters and the Bundesliga felt a little less one-sided.
But their season unravelled as spectacularly as it had begun, as Dortmund then suffered an excruciating run of eight Bundesliga matches without a victory.
A 2-1 home defeat to Werder Bremen spelt the end of Peter Bosz’s reign and Dortmund was once again on the lookout for a brand new manager.
If Dortmund starts the season well and grinds out some victories then it is essential that they maintain their form.
Last season was definitely a missed opportunity and their spectacular winter capitulation paved the way for Bayern Munich to waltz in and win their 28th German league title.
It was certainly a chance missed for the Yellow’s and the Dortmund fans will expect their team to learn from that disastrous spell between October and December.
The Bundesliga is threatening to become similar to the Scottish League, one big team winning the title every season and with the size and the history of teams such as Dortmund it would be a travesty if this happens.
#2 The Great Revier Collapse
Perhaps the worst game of that horrific eight-match winless run was the capitulation against Schalke.
At the time, Dortmund was coming into the Revier Derby on the back of four defeats in their last five games, including humiliating beatings by the likes of Bayern Munich and Hannover.
But, Bosz and his men were sensational in the opening stages of the match and found themselves 4-0 up after just 25 minutes.
It looked as if Dortmund were heading towards a historic result and Schalke looked like they had just been put to the sword.
But the second half could not have been much worse as goals from Guido Burgstaller, Amine Harit, Daniel Caligiuri and a 96th-minute equaliser from Naldo, meant that Dortmund had lost their lead and dropped a very valuable two points.
This was one of the most painful nights in Dortmund’s recent history and it is a result that has to be avenged and put to rest, and there is no better way of banishing those demons than overcoming their traditional rivals.
If Dortmund finds themselves in front against Schalke then they have to stay focused and not let the lead slip through their hands.
#3 The Great Champion’s League Exit
Dortmund was unfortunate enough to find themselves in a group of death with defending champions Real Madrid, then Premier League runners-up Tottenham and the awkward and plucky Apoel Nicosia.
It was an extremely tough group and only the harshest football cynics would say that Dortmund should have progressed to the later stages, however, they did not win a single match and were even held to a draw by Apoel Nicosia home and away.
BVB just about scraped their way into Europe’s elite competition and their fans will be expecting their team to put in a better performance than last season.
A smooth progression as group leaders would help Dortmund fans forget about this horrific Champions League campaign and would raise the levels of optimism around the Signal Iduna Park.
#4 The Leaky and Shoddy defence
Dortmund conceded 47 goals domestically and 13 goals in the Champion’s League.
47 goals is by no means shameful, nor is it respectable, however, the fact that 19 of those goals came against the top three is a very measly statistic which is bordering on embarrassing.
There is evidently a problem in the Dortmund back line and they will not make any progress if the top teams keep exposing them like this.
For a very long time, the Bundesliga was regarded as being a predominantly two-horse race with Dortmund and Bayern Munich leading the pack, but Dortmund have slipped out of this category in recent years and if they are to climb their way back up they have to stop leaking goals against the top three.
#5 The 6-0 mauling against Bayern Munich
This was perhaps the most painful result of Dortmund’s turbulent season.
BVB came into this match with a lot of confidence having gone 12 games without a defeat, but Bayern Munich cut them down and ripped them to shreds.
Former Dortmund hero Robert Lewandowski scored a brace before half-time and then completed his hat-trick in the closing stages of the match.
Bayern Munich was simply irresistible and Dortmund never looked like they were in the match.
James Rodriguez, Thomas Muller and Frank Ribery also scored as BVB were humiliated in the Allianz Arena.
This match will go down in history but Dortmund have to put the demons of this game to sleep, by winning the next derby.
It would be unreasonable to demand them to beat the German champions 6-0 but a convincing victory over their old rivals would help fans forget about that horrific performance.
