Dortmund Goal CelebrationBVB absolutely demolished Real Madrid. This was not some 4-1 beating of a lower league team during a German cup tournament or a game against a team that was enjoying a Cinderella-esque run in the Champions League, but a win over the most dominant Champions League team of all-time. Exactly 24 hours before, Bayern Munich had taken apart the best team in the world for the past year in Barcelona and they could extend the lead in the second leg.

With the words leaving most people’s mouths about how the German league had now risen above the rest of the elite European leagues in the world, a second transfer announcement arose from the BVB camp announcing that four-goal striker Lewandowski had already agreed to terms that would have him leave Dortmund in the summer. This news was right on the tail of news stating that Mario Gotze would be joining Bayern Munich and the fear was already growing that the Bundesliga was becoming a league that would be dominated by only one team.

Seconds after Germany had put the rest in the rear-view, the rest were suddenly given an immediate life-line. Sure, Bayern Munich may dominate at the international stage for several more years, but BVB has officially tossed in the towel in regards to matching their title run of 2011-12 and matching the Champions League run that they have put together this season by releasing two of their best players. Although their manager has done great things with young talent, losing Gotze and Lewandowski would cripple even the most capable of squads.

Borussia Dortmund TiffoAs a fan and as someone that enjoys the emergence of new teams in world football, it discourages me and sickens me slightly to see how quickly a new power is being picked apart. Money has been too important in the game the last few seasons and I was hoping that FFP would start to allow teams like BVB to start to creep into the big picture. However, as long as the big are allowed to get bigger and the smaller teams continue to be a training ground for all of those bigger squads, then the elite leagues and elite tournaments will always tilt towards the more financially strong teams in the world.

At the end of the day, I have definitely become a BVB fan and I hope that the bandwagon has a longer life than what the future seems destined to hold. They will still have a decent midfield and defense, and the money from the Gotze and Lewandowski sale could result in bringing in a relatively high profile striker in their stead. At least for my sake and the sake of most other football fans, let us hope that Lewandowski may end up somewhere that does not see the “rich get richer.”

 

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