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For years now, the top dog of the Bundesliga has been FC Bayern Munich. Apart from winning the Bundesliga championship 26 times on a consistent basis ever since the 1968-69 season, Bayern has been able to establish themselves as a powerhouse of Germany football.
Bayern has dominated on an international level as well, having won 5 UEFA Champions League tournaments, with the latest one coming in the 2012-13 season. Along with all of this tournament success, Bayern Munich have found themselves at the top of the Bundesliga table for the past four seasons with an overall record of 111 wins, 15 draws and 10 loses.
For a team to be able to take down a powerhouse like Bayern, they will also have to be a force to be reckoned with. For the past few seasons, the only team who really has been able to do that is Borussia Dortmund.
Dortmund has not been as consistent as Bayern, but they do hold a record of 78-27-31 in the past four seasons. Dortmund does have a few Bundesliga championships to their name, as they have been able to win eight of their own with the most recent one coming in the 2011-12 season, and being runner-ups in two of the past three seasons.
Granted, Borussia Dortmund does not have the World Cup-like roster of FC Bayern Munich, but they do have a few pieces that can be utilized to dethrone their arch-rivals if given some time. Some of the top players who will be great pieces for this Dortmund squad are Julian Weigl, Marco Reus, Mario Gotze and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Julian Weigl
The 21-year-old defensive midfielder is an excellent playmaker who can make extraordinary passes out of nothing. Along with his passing skills, his concentration makes him a superb defensive player because he can remain calm under stressful odd-man situations.
Marco Reus
So far in the 2016-17 season with Dortmund, the 27-year-old has been able to contribute with two goals and three assists in seven appearances. Borussia Dortmund will be looking for Reus to continue contributing offensively, as he is primarily a left wing who also can play as an attacking midfielder or a right wing.
Mario Gotze
The ex-Bayern Munich midfielder is a decorated player on Dortmund's roster who has found success by winning in big-name tournaments like the World Cup (2014 Germany). Borussia Dortmund is hoping that his success on the pitch and experience in big tournaments will elevate their team to the top of the Bundesliga for years to come.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Out of the players who have been listed above, Aubameyang may be the one who is an absolute necessity for Borussia Dortmund to have a chance of dethroning Bayern Munich. In 16 games with Dortmund this season, Aubameyang has contributed 16 goals and an assist. Unfortunately for Dortmund, it appears that Aubameyang would like to leave Dortmund in search of a possible career in Spain with Real Madrid.
"We have had a brief meeting with Aubameyang and have advised him to give fewer interviews about his plans for the summer and focus more on the race for Champions League qualification," the club's sporting director Michael Zorc told German publication Westdeutsche Allgemeine.
In the past 44 matches, Aubameyang has been able to produce 32 goals across all competitions to remain one of the deadliest strikers in Europe. Losing Aubameyang would be hurtful for Dortmund, in the fact that he produces points for the team. However, if there is no other option but to let Aubameyang go for his displeasure of playing for Borussia Dortmund, than the team will have to target someone else in the offseason.
The Gabonian spent some time away from Dortmund at the Africa Cup of Nations tournament, where Gabon would not qualify for the quarterfinals with three straight draws against Guinea-Bissau, Burkina Faso and Cameroon.
Although Borussia Dortmund could dethrone Bayern Munich, this task will not come easily, and will take some time. At this point in the Bundesliga standings, Borussia Dortmund sits in fourth place right behind Eintracht Frankfurt with an 8-7-3 overall record. This means that Bayern Munich holds a 14-point lead over their arch-rivals at the current state of time, with still plenty of time left in the season. Bayern Munich may run the Bundesliga for a few more years, but do not be surprised if you see Borussia Dortmund slide into their role as the top German club.
