Pressure Is on Borussia Dortmund to Win Europa League After Revierderby Draw

Borussia Dortmund head coach Thomas Tuchel was surprisingly forthcoming in his interview with German broadcaster Sky before the Revierderby away at Schalke on Sunday, but he didn't have to be.

His team selection said it all, loud and clear. The Bundesliga has taken a backseat for the Black and Yellows. Tuchel merely confirmed, as relayed by Dortmund-based football writer Stefan Buczko:

The pressure is now on Tuchel and his Dortmund side to do just that, and more: Anything other than the UEFA Europa League title would be a disappointment.

Despite the 23-point disparity between the Black and Yellows and their archrivals in Royal Blue, the Revierderby remains a special occasion.

Using this game for heavy rotation—Tuchel made no fewer than eight changes, as only Mats Hummels, Sven Bender and Erik Durm kept their places in the starting XI from the first leg against Liverpool—might have been a necessary evil, but the measure will surely be contested should Dortmund fail to advance to the semi-finals on Thursday.

Of course, Tuchel's plan could well have worked. Dortmund were arguably the better side despite playing with a lineup consisting largely of back-ups in a shape they're not overly familiar with, a 3-4-2-1 alignment.

Had it not been for a rash challenge from Greece international Sokratis Papastathopoulos on Klaas-Jan Huntelaar when Sven Bender looked to be in position to make a clean play on the ball in the 65th minute, the visitors could've gone home with all three points in their bags. As the expected-goals chart from football analyst Michael Caley shows, Dortmund created the better chances in the game:

"

xG map for the Revierderby. Looks like this result was pretty rough on Dortmund? pic.twitter.com/F5MAv2XNJH

— Michael Caley (@MC_of_A) April 10, 2016"

Tuchel said about his lineup after the game, per the club's official website:

"

The two Liverpool games have played a role, of course. I already had an idea of the lineup in my head. In the 48th game of the season, I knew we were reaching our limit. I know there were a lot of changes but with each video analysis it felt better that we could make good ones after 60 minutes. We believed in the lineup 100% today and this has been justified today.

"

The two most surprising selections for the starting XI, 17-year-old Christian Pulisic and Moritz Leitner, certainly justified their coach's decision.

Starting only his second match at the professional level, Pulisic was his side's best player in the first half. He had Dortmund's only true goalscoring opportunity in the 23rd minute, as he forced Schalke's goalkeeper Ralf Fahrmann into an outstanding save (one that the referees missed):

"

Had my heart in my mouth, @cpulisic_10. pic.twitter.com/wPJqZcmWrY

— али (@PuIisic) April 10, 2016"

Sporting director Michael Zorc praised his club's most talented academy product, per the club's official website, saying "he really made the game move, especially in the first 30 minutes. You could not catch him because of his speed and agility."

Leitner, meanwhile, also started his second match of the season and assisted one of the finest goals you'll see from Shinji Kagawa with his backheel:

"

What a finish by Kagawa. Ice cold, man. #BVB #Revierderby #S04BVB pic.twitter.com/hye1Td9uy1

— Challengers Podcast (@ChallengersPod) April 10, 2016"

The Japanese's almost casual, audacious chip from the edge of the box would've been worth the price of admission alone, but neither this nor Dortmund's second goal, a close-range header from defender Matthias Ginter, was enough for the win.

With the draw, Dortmund not only failed to complete the double over Schalke for only the second time this millennium, they also waved goodbye to the last hopes of winning the Bundesliga title this season.

If truth be told, they were faint all year long until Bayern Munich surprisingly lost to Mainz on March 2, and Dortmund would've needed to beat the Bavarians in the home match three days later to mount a real challenge, but now it's really over.

That means, of course, that the Black and Yellows, should they fail to advance at Anfield on Thursday, would have lost two trophy chances in one week.

Especially after sacrificing the Revierderby, of all games, for the Europa League, that scenario would cast quite the shadow over a very impressive first season for Tuchel.

Lars Pollmann is a Featured Columnist writing on Borussia Dortmund. He also writes for YellowWallPod.com. You can follow him on Twitter.