In the past few months, there has been a major shift in the Borussia Dortmund dressing room. Despite having a tough season, the German club managed to finish off the season with the German League Cup with a 4-1 win over RB Leipzig in May. Since then, the arrival of coach Marco Rose to the club has reportedly resulted in a more positive dressing room at Dortmund as compared to the past couple of years, and it has also been visible in the results.
Dortmund had a fantastic pre-season where they showcased their strengths, but with a 5-2 win in their opening game of the Bundesliga, the German club truly made a statement. Now, with the DFL Super Cup match against Bayern Munich set to take place on Wednesday this week, there are realistic hopes that BVB can beat the German giants to pick their first trophy of the season.
Also read: Borussia Dortmund legend Sebastian Kehl outlines how club plans to challenge Bayern Munich
During a media call on DFL Supercup Virtual Visit Day 1, Dortmund midfielder Giovanni Reyna opened up on the camaraderie between the players and the staff in the dressing room and explained how it will help the team throughout the season.
"So far, the pre-season our team chemistry - and our team bonding has been great. The staff has been really positive. We have a lot of really great guys throughout the team and throughout the staff. That is off the pitch and on the pitch, you can really see it is starting to really translate as a unit. The chemistry we have that we are building, we can still improve on it in many areas, but yeah I think we have a great base right now on and off the pitch with the people we have here, and it is only going to get better," the 18-year-old USA wonderkid said in a reply to a question posed by the Hindustan Times.
{{/usCountry}}"So far, the pre-season our team chemistry - and our team bonding has been great. The staff has been really positive. We have a lot of really great guys throughout the team and throughout the staff. That is off the pitch and on the pitch, you can really see it is starting to really translate as a unit. The chemistry we have that we are building, we can still improve on it in many areas, but yeah I think we have a great base right now on and off the pitch with the people we have here, and it is only going to get better," the 18-year-old USA wonderkid said in a reply to a question posed by the Hindustan Times.
{{/usCountry}}There was a hilarious moment in the opening contest against Eintracht Frankfurt where Gio Reyna was seen attempting to take a shot on target while his shoe was in his hand. The attacking midfielder opened up on the incident and said that having a bond with the players and staff makes him want to give everything he can for the team.
"Obviously, I stepped down and my shoe fell off, I was still trying to score a goal, I did not have enough time to put the shoe back on. I slipped after that with no shoe on," Reyna said with a smile.
"But it's important that we have team chemistry and we get along off the pitch. We are with each other almost more than with our families - at least I am. So it's important that you get along with the people that you are with the most, that you really care about them. And really get along with them. It's been great so far, over time, as we keep growing, you will see the chemistry of the team improve even more," he further said.
On being asked about his chemistry with Dortmund forward Erling Haaland Braut, Reyna said that the Norwegian can be the best in the world.
"Erling has been great with me so far, I am sure he will continue to be great with everybody. He is a real team player, a great guy. There is no ceiling for him. He keeps on getting better. Every day he is picking something new and adding it to his game. He can be unbelievable, he is already amazing. He can really be one of the bests ever. He is so important to the team. He is a great guy, and we are all really happy to have him around.
"He has started to produce assists as well, it's nice. He pays us back for all the assists me and Marco Reus made for him, so it's great (laughs)," he signed off.