Borussia no longer dormant
Until a week and a half ago, Dortmund were said to be sinking into mediocrity.
Death. You can smell it. It reeks. You can see it. Vultures circle. It’s much the same with a ‘faltering’ football club. Words raise a stink. Those who write them circle ever closer. It is easy to imagine why the manager of a football club would call a journalist a merchant of death. In death though, lies rejuvenation. Borussia Dortmund’s Jurgen Klopp knows this. The Klopp compares the football his side plays to heavy metal.
Consider what Deena Weinstein in her 2005 book ‘Fast ‘ has to say about heavy metal. “Bands that created heavy metal developed a thick, massive sound, characterized by highly amplified distortion, extended guitar solos, emphatic beats and overall loudness.”
Until a week and a half ago, Dortmund were said to be sinking into mediocrity. Wrecked by injuries, lacking in energy and with a coach who was supposed to be walking out. What followed, was simply phenomenal. Sweet, sweet music. They made Real Madrid go white with fear, beating them 2-0 in the second leg of their Champions League quarterfinal, falling short by a goal. Then came the 3-0 demolition of the Bayern in their own den in Munich. On Tuesday night, they turned a good season into a great one by stroling into the finals of the German Cup, beating Worlfburg, Germany’s form team. Who boosted those amps? The Klopp.
Music takes time to get right. It also requires the creator and the audience to get past the individual notes, which may sound horrible, and sit through the fine-tuning process, which can be painful. Now, the notes are falling in place. Young players — Milos Jojic, Oliver Kirch and Erik Durm — blossoming. Stars Marco Reus and Robert Lewandowski finding form. The ferocious pressing is visible once again. A band is playing in sync.
There appears a roadmap for the next season without the prize hunter, Lewandowski, who is leaving. A new signing, a contract extension, players set to return to return from injury in time for the next season.
For many, heavy metal is music dying noisily and not fast enough — a reason they may fail to notice that life lies in rejuvenation and death, a reason they were so quick to write off Dortmund. Manchester United, Arsenal and Barcelona — one of whom Klopp is supposedly off to —can wait.
Hormazd is senior sub editor based in Delhi.
hormazd@expressindia.com
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