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What was that?

But probably not Borussia Dortmund, this team that apparently symbolizes young talent, whose early fame has gone to their heads, and who lack mentality?

However, the team that Manchester City challenged on Tuesday in a way that no opponent had been able to for months, consisted almost exactly of the players who had been panned by criticism in the days before.

Not entirely without good reason, because they have almost negligently gambled away the most important goal of the season, qualifying for the Champions League.

Almost everything that Edin Terzic's team had not recently shown in the Bundesliga, they now showed - on the largest stage.

Suddenly it ran: brave, focused and determined, BVB went to their own performance limits.

The mileage, the duel behavior, the speed - all secondary virtues were called up.

In footballing terms, there was never any doubt about that anyway, this team is capable of a lot - even at the very highest level.

There aren't many German teams at the moment who are capable of this.

Strictly speaking, only two: Bayern and BVB.

Unexpected explosion in performance

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It is tragic that Dortmund lost through an unfairly refused goal and a late goal in the 90th minute.

They would have deserved more than this 1: 2 - even if the result still leaves hopes of reaching the semi-finals.

The unexpected and impressive explosion of performance in black and yellow, however, raises questions: Why does this highly talented team so rarely succeed in reaching their limits?

Is it due to a lack of professionalism?

Safe somewhere.

Because professionalism is always an expression of maturity.

Many of the young players find it difficult to get involved in the gray everyday life with the same dedication as in these highlights in the premier class.

The Champions League is the ultimate kick for the Bellinghams, Haalands, Moreys and Reynas.

There they are, running their lungs out of their bodies and showing the best they can do.

Hummels looks thoughtful

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They do it occasionally in the Bundesliga.

Even Haaland is now indulging in his creative breaks, even if it is not noticeable in his goal rate.

But a top team shows full commitment not only in Manchester, but also against Frankfurt and Stuttgart, says Mats Hummels.

Erling Haaland remained goalless in Manchester

Source: AP / Dave Thompson

He looked thoughtful after the final whistle on Tuesday.

On the one hand, this was due to the late goal.

On the other hand, it is also because he will most likely not play the Champions League again in the coming season with a team that can actually do it.

This realization is more bitter than the late conceded goal.