Kovac laments lackluster display despite Dortmund win

Borussia Dortmund bounced back in the Bundesliga with a 2-1 victory away at Koln, yet head coach Niko Kovac expressed deep frustration over his team’s underwhelming performance.

Following their recent defeat in the top-of-the-table showdown against Bayern Munich, Dortmund reclaimed winning form on Saturday, largely due to Maximilian Beier’s standout contribution. 

Beier assisted Serhou Guirassy for the opening goal in the 16th minute and then scored himself on the hour mark, giving Dortmund a commanding lead on the road.

However, Jakub Kaminski’s late strike in the 88th minute injected tension into the closing stages, forcing Dortmund to cling on for the three points. 

This result keeps them 11 points adrift of league leaders Bayern while fending off pressure from Hoffenheim.

Despite the win, Dortmund’s showing was far from dominant. They generated an expected goals (xG) value of 1.95 from 13 shots, compared to Koln’s 1.14 from 14 attempts, highlighting inefficiencies in their play.

Kovac admitted to reporters that his primary emotion was annoyance, even though they secured the victory in a match where the team underperformed. 

He noted that as a coach, he had every right to feel irritated about such a display. Kovac contrasted this with their loss to Bayern the previous week, where he appreciated the way they played despite the result. 

In this game, however, he disliked their overall approach entirely, pointing out that they lacked the necessary sharpness.

With nine Bundesliga fixtures remaining, Dortmund remain well-positioned to qualify for Champions League football. 

They have already exited UEFA’s premier tournament for the 2025-26 season after a 4-3 aggregate defeat to Atalanta, and they are also eliminated from the DFB-Pokal.

Beier suggested that the absence of these additional commitments could allow Dortmund to focus and elevate their performance to end the league season strongly.