The demise of Borussia Dortmund: From Champions League finalists to 'everything falling apart' in the space of six months for the German giants

Dortmund's remarkable run to the Champions League final played a major part in Sahin's appointment. The former BVB midfielder had returned to the club in December 2023 alongside former team-mate Sven Bender to become part of Edin Terzic's coaching staff and made a positive impact at Signal Iduna Park.

Consequently, when Terzic decided to step down last summer, explaining he had taken the club as far as he could, he backed the decision to select Sahin as his successor.

Dortmund sporting director Lars Ricken also felt that the former academy graduate was the logical choice to take over, with Bender almost inevitably installed as his No.2. "Nuri knows the club and its DNA," the ex-BVB winger said, "both from his time as a player and from his time as an assistant coach."

However, externally, there was some scrutiny of Sahin's credentials, given his only previous experience in the role of a head coach had come during a two-year spell at Turkish outfit Antalyaspor. Sadly, the fear that the job had come too soon for Sahin proved well-founded.

Although Dortmund made a positive start to both their Bundesliga and Champions League campaigns, the team's lack of cohesion and consistency quickly became causes for concern. Encouraging victories throughout Sahin's first few months in charge were often followed by dreadful defeats, and Dortmund just couldn't seem to put anything resembling a decent run of form together.

In fact, they often struggled to play well for an entire game, proving worryingly prone to costly lapses in concentration and seemingly incapable of responding to setbacks.

There were some mitigating factors, such as an injury crisis in defence and the loss of Karim Adeyemi to a muscular problem after scoring a hat-trick in an impressive 7-1 rout of Celtic in the Champions League. However, Sahin was also accused of making too many tactical and personnel changes from game to game - which many critics believed was the cause of the team's inconsistency.

Ultimately, though, he was undone by his inability to address Dortmund's defensive deficiencies, with BVB managing to keep just one clean sheet in the Bundesliga since August 31.

The faint hope was that the winter break might spark an upturn in form, as it offered Sahin a chance to shore up his side's backline. However, for the first time in the club's history, Dortmund lost their first three games of a calendar year, conceding nine times in the process.

It was at that point that it was clear that the club's faith in one of the finest players of the Jurgen Klopp era was wavering. After Friday's 2-0 loss at Eintracht Frankurt, Ricken admitted that while Sahin would remain in charge for the Champions League trip to Bologna, it would be "with the clear expectation that we need victories".

What was clearly a must-win match for the manager actually started well for Dortmund, with Serhou Guirassy putting the visitors a goal to good after just 15 minutes by converting a penalty. However, Dortmund's display thereafter was dire, bereft of either confidence, courage or conviction.

Sahin's side managed just one further shot on target, and whereas his changes had no impact on the proceedings, three of Italiano's substitutes - Samuel Iling-Junior, Jens Odgaard and Thijs Dallinga - combined for the two goals that won the game for Bologna.

"If we take an analytical approach, the team is physically and mentally in a bad way," the legendary Matthias Sammer said on Amazon Primein his role as a pundit - rather than his position as a club consultant. "The foundations just aren't there. The team can't defend, but they can't attack either.

"There is no clear structure, everything is falling apart."

The question is, why?

Sahin has certainly appeared completely out of his depth, devoid of the requisite tactical acumen or force of personality to inspire a turnaround. During his final press conference as coach, he insisted that he would have no issue with being sacked if it were for the good of the club he loves.

"If a change of coach will solve all of our problems, then so be it," he stated. "It is not about me but Borussia Dortmund." He was right in every sense.

Sahin was a symptom rather than the cause of Dortmund's struggles, which is why questions are now being asked of those in more powerful positions at Signal Iduna Park, including technical director Sven Mislintat and sporting director Sebastian Kehl, who are being blamed for the unbalanced nature of a Dortmund squad that has also sorely missed the two key leaders that left last summer, Mats Hummels and Marco Reus. There have even been calls for ex-BVB captain Kehl to be relieved of his duties at the end of the season if reinforcements do not arrive before the close of the January transfer window.

Some supporters also believe that it's high time that Dortmund bring an end to their apparent obsession with appointing coaches and directors that "know the club" and they are, thus, hoping that Sahin's successor will represent a clean break from the recent recruitment policy.

The frustrated fans view last season's Champions League final appearance as an anomaly that, just like the presence of so many familiar faces in the dugout and the stands at Signal Iduna Park, has done nothing to quell the mounting suspicion that the club has been drifting for some time now, suffering from a sort of identity crisis and guilty of placing commercial interests above sporting success.

There is, at least, an opportunity for Dortmund to hit the reset button, with Hans-Joachim Watzke, such an influential figure during the glory days under Klopp, having already announced he'll step down as CEO this autumn. Dortmund are in a difficult position, though, given the need to restore the admirable values and commitment to youth that made the club so respected around the football world, while also ensuring that they do not become prisoners of the past.

It's not an easy balance to strike in the modern game, as any Manchester United follower will attest.