Berlin: Roman Burki says Borussia Dortmund lacked focus early in their 3-1 Champions League defeat at Monaco amidst the fall-out from last week’s bomb attack on their team bus.
“We weren’t 100 per cent ready from the first second, perhaps we were too intent on scoring,” said Dortmund goalkeeper Burki after Wednesday’s defeat with the Germans failing to overturn their 3-2 first-leg defeat.
The Germans bowed out leaving Monaco to join Real Madrid, Juventus and Atletico Madrid in Friday’s draw for the Champions League’s semifinals after winning their quarterfinal 6-3 on aggregate against Dortmund.
The Germans were rocked by last week’s attack when three explosive blasts hit the team coach on the way to the first-leg match leaving defender Marc Bartra needing surgery for a broken wrist.
Police are still hunting the culprits.
The home leg was eventually played last Wednesday, but the shell-shocked Borussia players later complained they were traumatised by the events of the previous 24 hours.
In Monaco, French police held the Dortmund team bus up by around 15 minutes for security reasons, which German coach Thomas Tuchel said unsettled his players.
“After what happened to us, there is hardly a worse feeling than sitting together again on a bus which isn’t moving. It was an oppressive feeling,” he added.
Former Germany international Marcell Jansen said the trauma of last week was plain to see and had hamstrung Dortmund’s performance in Monaco.
“The players are still feeling the effects, one can see that clearly,” said Sky pundit Jansen.
“That wasn’t the Dortmund we know. That was a team who wanted to do everything, but just couldn’t do it.”
Dortmund’s plight in Monaco was not helped by Tuchel’s decision to play Erik Durm, who has just returned from injury, on the right wing, which proved to be a disaster.
The Germany international was dragged off after only 26 minutes as Monaco had attacked freely down his channel and raced into a 2-0 lead through goals by Kylian Mbappe and Radamel Falcao. —AFP
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