Klopp: Borussia Dortmund's Bundesliga position remains in 'critical' condition
Jurgen Klopp has acknowledged that Borussia Dortmund are in a "critical" situation ahead of Tuesday's DFB-Pokal clash with St. Pauli.
The Signal Iduna Park side have lost their last four matches in the Bundesliga - leaving them hovering above the relegation places - but are overwhelming favourites to reach the third round of the German Cup competition The Westphalians, who have picked up three wins out of three in the Champions League this season, find themselves just one point and one position above the relegation zone with only seven points from nine Bundesliga fixtures.
It was the same story as it has been for much of the campaign for Dortmund, whose problem is not creating chances, but converting them. Adrian Ramos and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were particularly guilty in the first half. Mats Hummels saw his header turned onto the crossbar by Ron Robert Zieler as the fans inside the Westfalenstadion started to get a familiar feeling. Marco Reus lifted his shot onto the roof of the net from the edge of the area as chance after chance was wasted by Klopp's men.
Klopp's position at BVB is under scrutiny and he conceded that his players might be letting their nerves affect performances, contributing to their shockingly poor results in the Bundesliga.
"The fear of not winning is certainly there," the coach told reporters on Monday. "Sometimes we lack the necessary rest to perform. But we have to work. The preparation has been normal despite the critical situation that we've found ourselves in. We know the nature of this competition, that we're out if we lose. A couple of the players are over-worked, but there are no new injuries."
Dortmund's cup clash at second-division side St. Pauli kicks off on Tuesday. Next up in the Bundesliga for last season's runners up is a daunting visit to champions and league leaders Bayern Munich.
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