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'We want to win this thing!' – Kovac has single-minded focus on Champions League win

16h29 CET

03/11/2026

Niko Kovac says there is "only one direction" for Borussia Dortmund to go in against Real Betis in the Champions League, and that is to win.

Dortmund have made a fairly strong start to their Champions League campaign, with six points on the board from their first three games (W2 L1).

They have beaten both Villarreal and Sabah, but a 1-0 loss to Bodo/Glimt is sandwiched between those two results.

Dortmund come into their clash with Betis high on confidence, after a late Fabio Silva goal against Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga snatched a 2-2 draw in last weekend's Klassiker.

And while this is the first-ever meeting between BVB and Betis, Dortmund do come into this on a run of four consecutive wins against Spanish teams in the competition.

"If the team brings it to life the way they did this weekend, it's no problem at all whether we play a back three or a back four," Kovac said.

"Attitude, passion, intensity – those are the attributes you need.

"[On Wednesday], there's only one direction: We want to win this thing!

"We have to impose our style of play, especially here at our stadium with our fans."

Betis are one of five teams left with a perfect record in this season's Champions League, winning all three of their matches so far.

But Dortmund have only lost two of their last 24 Champions League home games (W15 D7), outscoring their opponents by 34 goals across these 24 matches (52 for, 18 against).

This is Dortmund's eighth game in the last three weeks, but despite the busy schedule, goalkeeper Gregor Kobel believes the team are in the best shape possible.

"Based on how I see the team and how I feel myself, I have to say: We're all at a very, very high athletic level," he said.

"We feel good and are ready to perform every few days."

Asked if the Bayern result served as an extra confidence boost, Kobel insisted morale was already high: "We knew what we were capable of."

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