5 Issues Borussia Dortmund Need to Work on During International Break

Borussia Dortmund may be smiling again after beating high-flying Borussia Monchengladbach this weekend, yet such enthusiasm and hope will have to be put on ice for the next two weeks, as we once again turn our attention to the international break. 

Yet as the club's best players shoot off to represent their national teams in qualifiers and friendlies alike, Jurgen Klopp and his coaching staff will be back in the office each day trying to iron out the remaining creases in their bumpy start to the season. 

Here are some of the issues that still plague Dortmund's current campaign and what Klopp and Co. have to do to sort them all out. 

Sort out Marco Reus' Situation at the Club

Martin Meissner/Associated Press

The first point on today's list of issues for Dortmund to sort out over the next two weeks is perhaps the most unrealistic: sort out Marco Reus' contract situation at the club. 

Although everything has been subject to rumours and transfer gossip, the Dortmund forward has been heavily linked with Bundesliga rivals Bayern Munich following the club's CEO, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, suggesting that they could “potentially be interested” in the player's services. 

As stated on October 31, per Reuters (via The Guardian), Reus responded by stating: “At the moment there are a lot of people talking about my future. There is a lot of speculation and a lot is being written. So I would like to take this opportunity to say that other people are thinking more about my future than me.”

Yet that leaves little solace to Dortmund fans who have been in this position with star players far too many times.

If the club have an opportunity to sit down with Reus over the next two weeks and hammer something out then they should throw everything they can into making sure it's resolved before the January transfer window rolls around. 

Get Ilkay Gundogan Fighting Fit

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

The return of Ilkay Gundogan has been a long, treacherous process for both the player and thousands of Dortmund fans over the past 18 months. 

Yet just when we thought the dynamic midfielder was back and ready to go, we've seen Klopp instead keep him from returning to the squad and reclaiming his spot in midfield. 

Since returning from injury, the German international has sat out two of six available games and has only completed a full 90 minutes once. It shows that despite overcoming his injury, Gundogan is still far from match fit. 

With this international break coming at an opportune time, there should now only be one thing on this player's mind: get fighting fit for the return of domestic football. 

Henrikh Mkhitaryan Must Practice His Shooting

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Although Dortmund fans are by and large perfectly happy with the progress Armenian international Henrikh Mkhitaryan has been making since arriving at the club, specifically the manner in which he has slowly forced himself into becoming a first-team regular, the attacking midfielder simply isn't scoring enough at the moment. 

According to Squawka.com, Mkhitaryan has a shot accuracy of 35 percent, which falls way below most of his team-mates in attack. 

Adrian Ramos and Shinji Kagawa both sit below the Armenian, but Reus and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have both excelled in their goalscoring with 44 and 67 percent, respectively. If Mkhitaryan really wants to thrive at Dortmund, he'll have to get practicing and start putting away those chances in the Bundesliga. 

Give Erik Durm a Rest

Martin Meissner/Associated Press

One of the darker aspects of modern football is the extreme amount of pressure and physical endurance young players are put through as soon as they prove themselves as able replacements for the first team. 

Such a ploy can often lead to burnout, which is exactly what we have seen from young Erik Durm from time to time at left-back this season. 

Due to international commitments with Germany over the summer, the 22-year-old was never given a proper rest after his breakthrough season last year and has now come into this current campaign slightly jaded. 

Despite some fantastic performances, the left-back hasn't looked himself and would surely benefit from a long lie in over the next two weeks. He certainly needs it. 

Priorities Must Now Turn Back to the Bundesliga

Andres Kudacki/Associated Press

Now that Dortmund have finally got themselves back to winning ways in the Bundesliga, with a somewhat dominant win over Gladbach on Sunday, Klopp will undoubtedly hope to return from the extended break with a fresh approach to a league campaign that has left some bruises to his team's confidence this season. 

The black and yellows have already qualified for the next round of the Champions League, meaning the coach can put the upcoming group matches against Arsenal and Anderlecht on the back burner for the time being. 

Paderborn, Eintracht Frankfurt and Hoffenheim await the former German champions in the league and Klopp knows each of those three games is a must-win. Dortmund have from now until the winter break to prove that they can turn their domestic season around.