RB Leipzig vs Borussia Dortmund - Dortmund on right path, insists boss Stoger



Posted Friday, March 02, 2018 by PA

RB Leipzig	 vs Borussia Dortmund - Dortmund on right path, insists boss Stoger

Borussia Dortmund manager Peter Stoger insists his side are on the “right path” ahead of their clash against Bundesliga top-four rivals RB Leipzig.

Dortmund have moved up to second, albeit 19 points behind runaway leaders Bayern Munich, following the dismissal of Peter Bosz in December.

Stoger, the former Cologne boss, became Dortmund’s first coach in the club’s history to go unbeaten in his opening nine Bundesliga matches in charge.

But following their draw at home to Augsburg on Monday, the Austrian was in agreement that there is still work to do.

“We are on the right path,” said Stoger prior to their trip to the Red Bull Arena.

“People want to see a more proactive approach, more offensive play, and that we win games decisively by scoring more goals.

“We all want to be playing power football across the full 90 minutes, too, while pinning the opposition back and winning 3-0 or 4-0.

“We are not able to do that right now, but we march together into any headwind that might come our way.

“The Leipzig players are highly dangerous. We are prepared and we will see on Saturday whether we actually implement what we plan to do.”

Dortmund’s league clash against Leipzig will effectively be a dress rehearsal for their last-16 Europa League tie.

Leipzig will travel to Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion for the opening leg on Thursday, but manager Ralph Hasenhuttl says his focus is on getting Leipzig back in the top four.

Leipzig have taken just 10 points from their seven Bundesliga matches this year and are outside the Champions League qualification places.

“On Saturday, we face a direct rival for the Champions League spots and have put ourselves in a good spot to achieve our goals,” Hasenhuttl said.

“We’re full of beans and raring to go, even though it won’t be easy. The crucial thing for us is making sure close games swing in our favour.

“On Saturday, we don’t just need to put in a top performance but we have to play calmly.

“Against a team like Dortmund, you need everything to go right for you including luck. In recent weeks, we’ve had some tough tasks and we’ve shown we can play smart.

“We need to do that against Dortmund. It’s a serious challenge but we’re ready to put up a fight.”



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