Felix Kroos: “I see Dortmund as the favourite for second place”

The brother of Toni Kroos envisages a stronger season for the Westphalian giants, but expects them to come well short of Bayern’s mark.

Having come so close to lifting the Meisterschale in 2022/23, Borussia Dortmund’s challenges have been tame the last two seasons.

Finishing 27 and 25 points behind eventual winners Leverkusen and Bayern respectively, a big turnaround is needed.

Former footballer and now TV pundit, Felix Kroos, believes BVB are capable of coming closer in 2025/26, but won’t be champions.

“I see Dortmund as the favourite for second place, unfortunately relatively far behind Bayern Munich.

They can easily reclaim that [second place] position,” said the 34-year-old, in an interview with broadcaster RTL/ntv. 

“It won’t be enough to reach the top, but they can definitely achieve a better finish than last year. But you need the players for that. 

“They want to get as close to Bayern again and annoy them for as long as possible. They’ve been able to live up to that for a long time.

“BVB fans may lack the imagination at the moment to believe that it’s possible to pose a threat to Bayern with this squad,” he added.