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Y. Moukoko (78)

Terzic on "derby day":
"Nothing worse than congratulating Schalke on a victory."

By Peter Weis   @PeterVicey

In addition to supplying squad injury updates at his Friday press conference, BVB trainer Edin Terzic supplied a memorable quote ahead of what shall be his second "großes Revierderby". 
Edin Terzic.
Edin Terzic.
One doesn't need to explain the importance of German football's longest and greatest rivalry to Borussia Dortmund trainer Edin Terzic. The native of nearby Menden are up supporting the BVB. While Saturday's showdown against Schalke shall constitute only his second "Ruhrpott" clash with fierce rivals Schalke as the team's head-coach, the 39-year-old knows full well the significance of "derby day" in Nordrhein-Westfalen from his youth.


"Believe me: there is nothing worse for BVB coach than congratulating the Schalke coach on a victory," Terzic noted at his Friday presser, "We are aware of the responsibility. We know how important this match is for our fans and the region. We know that we have to win this game for them, but we also want to win for ourselves."

The team looks to cleanse their palettes of the taste of defeat following two consecutive losses on the bounce. Terzic's Schwarzgelben turned in what was regarded by most everyone to be a humiliating performance in the league against Leipzig last weekend.  The bitter defeat to Manchester City on Wednesday saw some familiar problems crop up after the full-time whistle.

Cameras caught veteran defender Mats Hummels - as he is somewhat famous for doing at times - lecturing one of his teammates on their play. In this particular case, Hummels appeared to be upbraiding squad captain and national team colleague Marco Reus. Terzic sought to smooth things over at the presser.

"It wasn't an issue for them, so it wasn't an issue for us," the gaffer insisted, "We see this kind of thing all the time in the locker room. You saw it on the pitch this time. It's a media issue, not our issue. The two of them are our captains and led the way the whole game. I would to see [the leadership circle] grow even more."

Hummels, who started against Man City in the Champions' League, may not feature in the XI this time as Nico Schlotterbeck is fit and ready to go. Additionally, Thorgan Hazard, Karim Adeyemi, and Donyell Malen all ended up being fit enough to feature on Terzic's Wednesday night bench squad after all. Malen and Adeyemi even made appearances off the bench.


Apart from the long-term injured actors Mahmoud Dahoud, Sebastien Haller, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Mateu Morey, Terzic has the full roster to draw upon once again. One notable exception remains keeper Gregor Kobel, who must sit out his third consecutive fixture with a muscle tear. Alexander Meyer will start between the sticks again.

"Schalke will be studying the scenes from last weekend," Terzic emphasized, "We must bring our quality to the pitch, work aggressively and intensively to win midfield balls, and successfully move the ball forward with just a few good passes."


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