Borussia Dortmund

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Borussia Dortmund
Original Name	多特蒙德
Alias(es)	Hornets; Yellow Wall 49 51
Organization Type	Professional football club 38 42
Location	Dortmund, in Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia region 73
Home Ground	Westfalenstadion 48 62
Team Colors	Traditional yellow shirts 62 163
Competitions	Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League, German Cup, German Super Cup 48 110
Head Coach	Jürgen Klopp during Su Bai's season at the club; succeeded by Thomas Tuchel 42 217
General Manager	Hayden 38 209
Status	Active; continues competing after Su Bai and Klopp leave for Manchester City 217 263
First Appearance	Chapter 38, when Klopp initiates the pursuit of Su Bai 38

History

Recruiting Su Bai

Dortmund enters the story when Klopp watches Su Bai's Superclásico performances and immediately asks Hayden to send someone to Buenos Aires. The club's willingness to develop young players makes it an attractive destination for the sixteen-year-old attacker 38.

Following Mario Götze's departure to Bayern Munich, Dortmund needs a new attacking focal point. Klopp personally travels to Argentina to negotiate with Su Bai and Mino Raiola. Su Bai chooses Dortmund for its competitiveness and realistic opportunities to play, agreeing to an €8 million deal without a guaranteed starting position 42.

Rebuilding the Attack

Su Bai receives the number 45 shirt but initially watches training from the sidelines, not even making the practice match's B team. His powerful goals in the subsequent scrimmage impress the first-team players and persuade Klopp that he can become a major asset 45 46 47.

Dortmund's early competitive test comes against Bayern in the German Super Cup. Trailing 3–0 at halftime, Klopp gives Su Bai the entire second half. His debut goal revives the crowd, and Dortmund ultimately defeats Bayern before the Bundesliga opener 51 52 61.

Su Bai then earns a league starting position and becomes central to Klopp's attack. Dortmund beats Schalke 04 away 5–0, overcomes Stuttgart 3–1 despite injuries to Reus and Şahin, and wins 5–0 at Marseille in the Champions League 62 78 92 93 109.

Challenging on Three Fronts

Su Bai recommends Kevin De Bruyne after meeting him in London. Klopp orders a scouting review, and De Bruyne later joins Dortmund, strengthening the passing options behind the attack 90 124.

Dortmund advances through the Champions League group stage while remaining a contender in the league and German Cup. A 7–0 cup victory over 1860 Munich sends the club into the quarterfinals, with Su Bai and De Bruyne already combining effectively 124 128.

The campaign also exposes the team's dependence on Su Bai. Nuremberg wins 2–0 at Westfalenstadion after marking him so effectively that he cannot take a single shot. Klopp responds by arranging additional passing and distribution training 144.

Championship Season

Dortmund recovers from a 3–0 defeat against Real Madrid to reach the Champions League final. In domestic competition, a 5–0 win over Bayer Leverkusen secures a German Cup final place, while a 6–0 home victory against Schalke clinches the 2013–2014 Bundesliga title with two rounds remaining 153 156 157 160 161.

At Lisbon's Stadium of Light, Dortmund leads Barcelona 3–1 at halftime before Messi equalizes in the 85th minute. With Marvin Ducksch injured and the team tiring, Klopp orders an attack rather than settling for extra time. Su Bai completes his hat-trick with a late winner, and Hummels lifts the Champions League trophy—the club's first in seventeen years 168 170.

The team returns to a citywide celebration, including a water-salute welcome at the airport and an open-top bus procession. Its subsequent Asian tour visits Japan and China 171.

After Su Bai and Klopp

Su Bai reaches a verbal transfer agreement with Manchester City's owner, Mansour. By City's Premier League opener, both Su Bai and Klopp have left Dortmund, and Tuchel has taken charge. Mario Balotelli replaces Su Bai at center-forward, while much of the championship squad remains 209 217.

Results and coordination suffer despite the retained talent. Dortmund draws against Schalke, Ducksch's crosses fail to connect with Balotelli, and De Bruyne later becomes unavailable through injury. The club nevertheless remains second in the Bundesliga before its Champions League meeting with Manchester City 217 262.

Preparations for that match are disrupted by a training-ground fight between Balotelli and Aubameyang. During Su Bai's return to Westfalenstadion, however, supporters applaud him and sing his song rather than treating him as a traitor. Dortmund initially restricts City's attack with a midfield trap before Su Bai scores the opening goal 262 263.

Tactical Style

High Pressing and Conditioning

Klopp's Dortmund combines aggressive defensive pressing with rapid attacking transitions 51.

• Fitness emphasis: First-team players routinely run more than twenty laps in daily training, supporting sustained pressure late in matches 84.
• Tactical education: Players attend scheduled weekly sessions to study tactics and opponents; Klopp uses Champions League final footage to explain Gegenpressing 47.
• Selection by performance: No player has a permanently guaranteed starting place; surplus first-team players can be sent to the reserves for match practice 42 60.
• Long-term strain: The narration identifies exhausting training, repeated motivational speeches, and the sale of important players as pressures on Klopp's team 109.

Su Bai-Centered Attack

Klopp progressively reorganizes the offense to exploit Su Bai's shooting, physicality, and movement 60 93 95.

Tactical Setup	Function
Switching wing attacks	Su Bai and Reus rotate between flanks, allowing counterattacks to target whichever side is less protected 60 61 69.
Shadow striker	Su Bai operates behind Lewandowski; Reus and Ducksch provide width, with Şahin and Sven Bender forming the double pivot 95 107.
Free-roaming attacker	In Klopp's proposed 4–4–1–1, teammates make immediate positional switches around Su Bai's movement in the final third 95.
Central midfield deployment	Su Bai drops deeper to add physical pressure and long-range shooting; Dortmund also fields him alongside Şahin and De Bruyne against Chelsea 101 102 137.
Central forward	By the title-clinching match, Su Bai leads the line, supported by Reus and Ducksch wide and De Bruyne, Şahin, and Bender in midfield 161.

• Shooting freedom: Klopp explicitly decides that the attack must revolve around Su Bai and that he should have unrestricted freedom to shoot 93.
• Coordination problems: Aubameyang's direct runs and ineffective crosses initially disrupt the free-roaming system 95.
• Defensive counters: Stuttgart targets second balls and surrounds Su Bai in midfield, exposing Dortmund's limited distribution when Reus and Şahin are absent 92.
• Alternative approach: Against Chelsea, Dortmund demonstrates an unusually elaborate possession game at Westfalenstadion 138.

Tuchel's Approach

Tuchel preserves the high press but places greater emphasis on long balls down the flanks 217.

• Balotelli's poor cooperation with the wide players prevents the attack from functioning as smoothly as it did with Su Bai 217 262.
• Against Manchester City, Dortmund uses a 4–5–1 and surrounds Su Bai with Şahin, Bender, and Gündoğan, limiting City's dangerous attacks during the opening twenty-odd minutes 263.

Notable Personnel

Name	Role and Significance
Jürgen Klopp	Recruits Su Bai, builds the attack around him, and leads Dortmund to the Bundesliga and Champions League titles before moving to Manchester City 38 93 161 170 217.
Thomas Tuchel	Klopp's successor; retains the pressing framework but struggles with attacking coordination and dressing-room discipline 217 262.
Hayden	General manager involved in recruitment, contract negotiations, and the Asian tour 38 43 171 209.
Phyllis	Klopp's assistant; helps organize lineups and discusses tactical adjustments with him 45 92 95.
Su Bai	Number 45; develops from a new arrival into the team's attacking centerpiece and later joins Manchester City 45 93 209 217.
Marco Reus	Major star and wide attacker; forms an effective partnership with Su Bai and becomes Dortmund's leading star after his departure 49 101 263.
Robert Lewandowski	Center-forward and target man; partners Su Bai in attack, though his decision to join Bayern creates tension with Klopp 107 123.
Nuri Şahin	Deep distributor, Su Bai's first friend at the club, and a regular midfield partner of Bender 61 99 107.
Marvin Ducksch	Wide provider whose coordination with Su Bai makes him an important attacking contributor; struggles to reproduce those connections with Balotelli 95 107 217.
Kevin De Bruyne	Recruited following Su Bai's recommendation; supplies through balls and becomes a prominent Bundesliga midfield talent 90 124 262.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	Fast attacker competing for playing time; clashes with Klopp over tactics and later fights with Balotelli 91 93 124 262.
Mats Hummels	Center-back; wears the captain's armband while Kehl is injured and raises the Champions League trophy 62 170.
Roman Weidenfeller	Goalkeeper whose saves keep Dortmund in difficult matches against Bayern and Stuttgart 53 92.
Mario Balotelli	Replaces Su Bai after his departure; his unwillingness to combine with teammates becomes a major problem under Tuchel 217 262.

Achievements

Competition / Milestone	Documented Result
German Super Cup	Defeats Bayern Munich after trailing 3–0 at halftime 51 61.
2013–2014 Bundesliga	Wins the title for the second consecutive season, clinching it through a 6–0 victory over Schalke with two rounds remaining 160 161.
UEFA Champions League group stage	Drawn with Arsenal, Napoli, and Marseille; secures qualification early with four wins and one loss 81 124.
UEFA Champions League knockout stage	Faces Chelsea in the Round of 16, draws AC Milan in the quarterfinals, and overcomes Real Madrid to reach the final 127 139 153 156 157 160.
UEFA Champions League title	Defeats Barcelona in Lisbon; Su Bai scores a final hat-trick and wins the competition's Golden Boot 170.
German Cup	Reaches the final after beating Bayer Leverkusen 5–0 in the semifinal 160.
Su Bai's league scoring record	His Dortmund season produces 57 Bundesliga goals 173.
Su Bai's Champions League scoring	Scores 26 goals during the campaign 172.

Stadium and Supporters

• Westfalenstadion: The home crowd creates large card displays of the club crest and an intensely intimidating atmosphere for visitors 62.
• South Stand: Its standing section holds 25,000 supporters and is described as Europe's largest single-sided stadium stand 50.
• Matchday traditions: Fans gather outside the ground with yellow flags, beer, and the club anthem, including those without tickets 48.
• Su Bai's following: Supporters adopt a dedicated song for him, chant his name, and imitate his celebration during the title-clinching match 90 161.
• Klopp tribute: After the Champions League triumph, fans display a poster reading “Seven years of time, Klopp forever!” and chant his name 170.
• Lasting affection: Hummels, Weidenfeller, Reus, Ducksch, and the crowd greet Su Bai warmly when he returns as a Manchester City player 263.

Rivalries

• Bayern Munich — Principal domestic rival. Götze's move to Bayern intensifies supporters' hostility, while Klopp repeatedly frames matches against Bayern as tests of Dortmund's belief and ambition 49 51 99.
• Schalke 04 — Ruhr Derby opponent. The rivalry's first meeting occurs on May 23, 1925, when Schalke wins 4–0; Dortmund's championship season includes 5–0 and 6–0 derby victories 73 78 161.

Commercial Partnerships

• Titan Sports Weekly: Pays nearly €1 million to become Dortmund's official partner in China after its first-round Bundesliga livestream exceeds 4.9 million viewers. The agreement provides match-streaming access and expedited club interviews, including an exclusive Su Bai interview 74.
• 2014 Asian tour: Two matches over five days—against Tokyo FC and Everlasting Prosperity FC—generate €12 million. Su Bai's appearance contract in Japan requires at least forty-five minutes, but his absence prompts boos despite Dortmund's 5–0 victory 171 172.
• Hengtai cooperation: Hengtai signs strategic agreements with Dortmund and plans to employ coaches from its youth teams at premium salaries for a large youth-training base in China 172.