Since leaving Dortmund in the summer of 2013, Mario Götze has already been back to his former stamping ground three times, twice with Bayern and once with Germany. Those matches provided a return of two wins and one defeat, plus a goal for the striker himself. However, Götze will again be the centre of attention when FCB visit BVB on Saturday, as no-one quite knows what to expect from the passionately loyal home crowd.
“Let’s see what happens, but I don’t think much will have changed,” said the 22-year-old, as the reaction of the Dortmund faithful has been nothing short of hostile so far. It’s not a problem, the player insisted: “You have to live with it. I’ve already been through it a couple of times. It’s normal.”
Götze turned out for BVB from 2009 to 2013, scoring 22 goals in 83 Bundesliga appearances. He has pulled on a red shirt for almost two years now and has 19 goals to his name in 51 league fixtures. He has scored nine times this season and is only one short of equalling his personal best.
Evenly-matched teams
World Cup winner Götze is confident ahead of the clash with his former club. “I’m ready to take responsibility,” he said. FCB are without a number of key individuals, “and we can’t replace them like for like. But we’ll still send out a very good team. We’ll throw everything we have into the game, go for it, hopefully be on peak form and win the match.”
Götze can hardly wait for kick-off. “It’ll be a very exciting match, a meeting between equals. It’s the biggest game of the year for us in the Bundesliga, and I’m feeling good about it.”
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