Borussia Dortmund Must Keep Wits About Them After Fortunate Europa League Draw

Borussia Dortmund were dealt an easy ride on Friday afternoon, when the group stages of this season’s Europa League were drawn in Monaco.

Thomas Tuchel’s side found themselves in Pot 1 as the highest seeded side in Group C, alongside PAOK, FC Krasnodar and Qabala. The competition was relatively easy, minnows of the European game compared to some of the bigger names they may have been drawn with.

The Westfalenstadion faithful would have undoubtedly watched fellow European heavyweights Celtic and Liverpool drawn against foes such as Ajax, Fenerbahce and Bordeaux and quickly learned to appreciate the luck of their own draw.

In a tournament often cited as a nuisance to some of the more ambitious sides in Europe’s biggest leagues, Dortmund fans will undoubtedly demand a strong campaign in the continental competition, and with this draw, Tuchel’s side could make some real progress without having to exhaust their own resources.

Despite the strong start made by the former German champions—eight goals and six points from their first two league games—Tuchel will be well aware of the need to reestablish the club in the Bundesliga before he can take on luxuries like the Europa League.

Bayern Munich, Wolfsburg, Bayer Leverkusen and Schalke await the new-look side on German soil, and that is where Dortmund will make or break their first season under their new manager.

It speaks volumes about the quality of Dortmund’s upcoming Europa League foes that not one of the three sides has ever faced the Bundesliga side in European competition before. It's an interesting stat, considering how long the German side have been partaking in continental campaigns through the years.

However, that’s not to say that these three sides can’t cause all sorts of problems for Tuchel’s team over the course of the season.

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For starters, the simple geography of each club will undoubtedly add to the usual fatigue of midweek games across the tournament. Krasnodar, off the eastern coast of the Black Sea, is roughly 2,900 kilometres from Dortmund in north-east Germany, while Qabala is an additional 1,000 kilometres east of that in Azerbaijan.

The Russian side will undoubtedly put up the biggest test for Tuchel’s side, as they have a whole host of South American and European players who will fancy their chances against a Dortmund team still looking to regain their form in Europe.

Central defender Andreas Granqvist will be no stranger to most eagle-eyed Dortmund fans, as he had a notable career in Sweden and Holland before moving on to Russia. Meanwhile Brazilian attacking stars Ari, Wanderson and Joaozinho will look to test a Tuchel back line that hasn’t been completely faultless already in Europe this season.

Ultimately, Dortmund will have to have their wits about them as they enter this intriguing group, but the real test for Tuchel in his first Europa League campaign will be getting the most out of his players and ensuring no slip-ups occur early on in the competition.

This is a group that Dortmund really should qualify from with room to spare, and if the new manager can’t guide his side to such a point, then complications may arise further down the line. Untested waters against unknown foes await this German side in Europe.