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By Oliver Trust
BERLIN, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Ahead of their Champions League last 16 match against Sevilla, Borussia Dortmund seems trapped between future dreams and daily troubles.
Announcing Marco Rose as their future coach has created a sense of optimism even though the club is struggling to qualify for the next Champions League campaign.
While interim coach Edin Terzic is trying to avoid the worst-case scenario, his team has dropped out of the top four spots in the league (six points behind), the Black and Yellow fans are celebrating "a second Klopp," joining them in a few months.
Enthusiasm couldn't be greater in the lead-up to this week's challenges against the robust Spanish side and then the derby against arch-rivals Schalke.
Spending 5 million euros to trigger Rose's exit-clause in Moenchengladbach is well invested from their perspective.
Much more than his predecessors at Dortmund, Rose stands for what the club had been looking for since icon-like Juergen Klopp left in 2015 for Liverpool.
Thomas Tuchel, Peter Bosz, Peter Stoeger, Lucien Favre, and Terzic were all unable to revitalise the team after Klopp's departure.
Rose and the BVB leaders face the huge task of re-launching a team that is seemingly going nowhere at the moment.
Supporters are delighted when reading about Rose and Klopp's close relationship and the years spent together at FSV Mainz. Rose played 156 games under coach Klopp at the club.
Both gained promotion from the second tier in 2004 when Mainz was a footballing minnow.
Reports talk about Klopp's intense influence on Rose's coaching career. He adopted his former coach's approach of a dynamic attacking football and works with similar intensity.
"Our relationship is more than excellent," the current Moenchengladbach manager comments when talking about his former mentor.
Two years ago, when Rose made his way from RB Salzburg to Moenchengladbach, Klopp stated: "He is the most wanted at present. Everyone is asking me about him. Therefore, I say: 'Marco, make the best out of it.'"
Challenging weeks might lie ahead of Rose as he has to finish the job in Moenchengladbach. It includes a delicate game against Dortmund in the German Cup on March 2.
Both sides are in a tight battle for the Bundesliga's top spots as they are sixth and seventh (33 points apiece) in the league.
"We are very much looking forward to having him around, but we won't speak about him until his first day," Hans-Joachim Watzke said.
The Dortmund CEO seems well aware of his team's bumpy path until the end of the season. Not qualifying for the Champions League would mean a significant setback for the new coach.
Current key players like Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland might depart while the team needs to be restructured as it lacks the speed necessary for Klopp's and Rose's football style.
Rose faces the challenge of meeting with Dortmund's leaders to talk about next season's squad while he is in charge of another team.
The 44-year-old has done a great job in Moenchengladbach in the last two years but decided it is time to take the next step, just like his master Klopp when he headed for the Reds six years ago. Enditem