AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli insists his side are full of confidence as they look to get their first Champions League Group F win at Borussia Dortmund.

The Rossoneri, last season’s semi-finalists, were held to a goalless draw at home by Newcastle in their opening match, while Dortmund lost away to Paris St Germain.

Pioli’s team, though, have since won three straight Serie A games, with their only defeat so far this season a 5-1 loss to city rivals Inter.

Defeat in Paris is Dortmund’s sole loss from eight games in all competitions – and Pioli is expecting a vociferous atmosphere when AC Milan run out at the Westfalenstadion on Wednesday night

“Our recent wins in the league have given us confidence but now, tomorrow is all that matters,” Pioli told a press conference.

“Two years ago, when we played at Anfield, we were probably a bit afraid. But after a journey in Europe like ours, we’re able to compete in the competition and with atmospheres like this.

“We need to play with the right mentality and do all we can to try to win. The game is important in the group but there’s a long way to go, regardless of the outcome tomorrow. It won’t be decisive but the result will definitely matter.”

Pioli also highlighted Dortmund’s incredible home record in the Champions League.

He added: “They’ve not lost at home in the Champions League in almost two years.

“Dortmund play attacking football; they’re quick and have a lot of quality. We’ll need to be intelligent enough to attack the spaces and control the game at various moments.

“BVB are backed by a fantastic home support; we’ve spoken about these little details in training to be in the best shape possible for tomorrow evening.”

AC Milan look set to be without English midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who went off during the first half of Saturday’s Serie A win over Lazio with a groin problem.

French defender Pierre Kalulu has missed the last five games with a thigh injury, while midfielder Rade Krunic is also out with a similar issue and not expected to return until after the international break later in October.

Dortmund won 3-1 at Hoffenheim on Friday night before turning their attention back on the Champions League.

Despite having three victories from their last four games in all competitions, Dortmund coach Edin Terzic wants his side fully focussed on the challenge ahead.

“It will be a completely different game to the one against Paris (in the opening group game),” Terzic told a press conference.

“We have to be braver when we don’t have the ball. Milan have a different way of playing, but we have introduced a lot of good things in the last few games that will be crucial again.

“At this level, no game will be easy, but we have our first home game, with our guys and the fans in the stadium, so we want to get our first win tomorrow.”

Dortmund midfielder Marcel Sabitzer is closing in on a return from an adductor problem suffered against PSG, but the Austrian is not expected to be involved on Wednesday night.

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham vowed to "give absolutely everything" in the club's pursuit of Bundesliga glory.

A 4-0 thrashing of Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday moved Dortmund to the top of the standings, holding a one-point lead over Bayern Munich after their 3-1 defeat at Mainz.

Having lost 4-2 to Bayern at the start of the month, Dortmund's title dreams looked dead in the water, but Edin Terzic's side are unbeaten in the league since (W2 D1).

Meanwhile, Bayern have won just one of their three Bundesliga matches in that time (D1 L1) to flip the title race on its head and put Dortmund in the driving seat.

BVB top the Bundesliga table after 29 games for the first time since the 2011-12 campaign, the last time they won the title.

Bellingham, heavily touted for a mega-money transfer away from Signal Iduna Park at the end of the season, is ready to put it all on the line in pursuit of clinching the title.

"To be honest, it would mean everything. It would mean the world to me," he told Sky Sport Germany.

"I don't want to get ahead of myself and talk about it too much, to end up feeling like I've already won it, as there's five really tough games to come.

"But it would be massive, I would love more than anything to win the league with this club, after everything it's given me. I'll give absolutely everything to try and make that happen."

Edin Terzic wants his Borussia Dortmund players to capitalise on their position in the Bundesliga title race, saying they are "closer than ever".

Since Dortmund claimed two successive league titles between 2010 and 2012, rivals Bayern Munich have dominated, lifting the trophy for 10 straight campaigns.

However, an excellent run of form since the start of 2023 in which they have lost just one Bundesliga game, against Bayern, means Dortmund sit just two points behind the Bavarian side with six matches to play.

With a real chance of finally ending Bayern's string of titles, Terzic hopes his team can take advantage, telling reporters ahead of Saturday's game against Eintracht Frankfurt: "We're closer than ever to the championship trophy, and we don't want to miss this chance.

"We should start grabbing this chance with everything we have as soon as possible, to make it come true.

"If we want to be successful, we all have to be willing to go the extra mile. We have to invest everything to take advantage of our starting position. To do that, we need a home win on Saturday."

Dortmund would be level on points with Bayern if not for conceding a 97th-minute equaliser away at 10-man Stuttgart last time out, and Terzic feels his players are heading into the final stretches of the campaign "with a portion of anger".

Terzic also revealed there was a "question mark" over the availability of Niklas Sule, Nico Schlotterbeck and Anthony Modeste for the clash with European-chasing Frankfurt, though he said: "They were already able to increase the intensity in training, so we have to wait and see."

Edin Terzic called Borussia Dortmund's 3-3 draw with Stuttgart "brutally disappointing" as they missed the chance to move level with Bayern Munich at the Bundesliga summit.

The Black and Yellow looked on course to join Bayern at the top of the table when Gio Reyna struck in second-half injury time at Mercedes-Benz Arena.

But a 97th-minute equaliser from Silas Katompa Mvumpa instead saw them drop two crucial points in the title race against their 10-men hosts.

It is the latest capitulation of a topsy-turvy season for Dortmund, and Terzic did not hold back in his scathing assessment of their performance after the final whistle.

"We missed a huge chance as a team," he told Sky Sport Germany. "That is brutally disappointing.

"It is hard for me to find the words [to explain] why it happened.

"We thought that with the loss at home to Werder Bremen, we had already experienced the worst part of the season.

"But this tops it again. We were lucky in the early stages. If we are honest, we almost conceded four goals against a team that was outnumbered."

Dortmund held a man advantage for an hour of the game, after Stuttgart defender Konstantinos Mavropanos was dismissed for a second yellow card in the first half.

Their inability to capitalise on Bayern's own slip-up, after a home draw with Hoffenheim, leaves them trailing the Bavarian giants by two points in the Bundesliga title race with six games to play.

Dortmund next host Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

 

Edin Terzic breathed a sigh of relief after Youssoufa Moukoko's late winner guided Borussia Dortmund past Union Berlin, keeping them in touch with Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich.

Moukoko came off the bench to net the decisive goal after Donyell Malen's opener was cancelled out by Kevin Behrens, as BVB edged a battle between Bayern's two closest challengers 2-1.

The victory ensures Dortmund – who were beaten 4-2 by Bayern last week – remain two points adrift of Thomas Tuchel's league leaders with seven games still to play this term.

Terzic now has 32 wins from his first 50 league games in charge of Dortmund – more than any other Dortmund coach has posted in their first 50 matches at the helm – and the importance of their latest victory was not lost on the 40-year-old.

"It was a close but deserved win in an extremely important game for us," he told Sky Sport Germany. "We put in a really good performance in the first half, both offensively and defensively. 

"It's always difficult and always tight against Union Berlin. So we are very relieved to go home with a win.

"It is often not easy against this opponent. You can see the investment we had to make to get over the halfway line and have chances to score, and what the opponent had to invest to score.

"They are extremely dangerous on the break, and yet we managed to defend passionately at the end."

Moukoko reacted to his seventh league goal of the campaign by embracing Terzic on the touchline, and the Dortmund boss was pleased to see the young striker step up at a decisive moment.

"He's a goalscorer and has a feel for where the ball is going," he said. "I'm his coach and I want to have a close exchange with all the players – especially with such young players who have received a lot of praise in recent years. 

"When they are young, they only ever hear how good they are. Then they get into senior football and realise it's not that easy. 

"We want to help the boys grow up. It's extremely good for us that such a young guy once again decided the game for us."

Borussia Dortmund head coach Edin Terzic says his decision to leave out Jude Bellingham against RB Leipzig had nothing to do with recent criticism from Emre Can.

Bellingham was named among the substitutes for Wednesday's 2-0 loss at Red Bull Arena as Dortmund's DFB-Pokal hopes were ended at the quarter-final stage.

The England's international's omission came a day after Can publicly said his team-mate has "to learn a lot" after regularly letting his emotion get the better of him on the field.

But Terzic confirmed Bellingham was overlooked for a starting spot against Leipzig for fitness reasons, rather than any sort of falling out behind the scenes.

"Jude signalled after the game against [Bayern] Munich that he wasn't 100 per cent fit," Terzic told Sky Germany.

Asked about Can's criticism of Bellingham, Terzic said: "That has nothing to do with the decision."

Only Nico Schlotterbeck (37) has played more times for Dortmund than Bellingham (36) this season, with all but three of the midfielder's appearances being starts.

The 19-year-old, who has been linked with an array of Europe's top clubs, was introduced with an hour played against Leipzig but could not help Dortmund recover.

Will Orban scored in the 98th minute to add to Timo Werner's 22nd-minute opener in a deserved victory for Leipzig, who had 11 shots on target to BVB's one.

Dortmund have exited the DFB-Pokal and Champions League over the past month, while Saturday's 4-2 loss to Bayern saw them replaced at the top of the Bundesliga.

Terzic had no complaints over the loss to Leipzig and accepts his side's campaign is as good as over if they do not learn from their back-to-back defeats.

"It was a catastrophic game in the first half," he said. "It was basically a s*** evening because we did not advance to the next round of a cup we had a good chance of winning.

"It's now a matter of looking ahead. There's still an important competition in which we want to play a big role.

"But if you look at the performance against Leipzig and the performance in Munich, it will be difficult for us if we continue to play like this."

Edin Terzic is excited to test himself against Thomas Tuchel when Borussia Dortmund visit Bayern Munich for Saturday's Klassiker, but he is not viewing the game as a Bundesliga title decider.

Dortmund sit one point clear of Bayern at the Bundesliga summit as they bid to deny the Bavarian giants an 11th successive league title.

Amid suggestions of unrest behind the scenes, Bayern opted to make a change in the dugout during the international break, replacing Julian Nagelsmann with former BVB boss Tuchel.

Ahead of welcoming Tuchel back to the Bundesliga, Terzic said competing with the former Champions League-winning coach was evidence he had himself reached the top level.

"What hasn't changed at Bayern is that they have a top coach," Terzic said at Friday's press conference.

"It's a shame with Nagelsmann because he's an absolutely top coach, but we all know how quickly things can change. 

"I'm very happy to welcome Thomas Tuchel and it shows that I work at the top level. Tuchel is not only one of the best coaches, but also one of the most successful."

Tuchel averaged 2.09 points per game during his two-year spell in charge of Dortmund – the best figure managed by any boss in their Bundesliga history.

Dortmund are entering a Bundesliga matchday top of the table for the first time since the second week of the 2019-20 campaign, while the last time they did so during the second half of a season was when they visited Bayern in April 2019.

BVB suffered a chastening 5-0 defeat on that occasion as Bayern went on to be crowned champions, but Terzic does not believe Saturday's game will decide the destination of the title.

"I'm firmly convinced that the championship won't be decided in tomorrow's game, but of course it can point the way," he said.

"We think that we can set an example and we want to prove that we are different than we have been in recent years. 

"We not only respect the task against Bayern, but also the upcoming duels. This is the hot phase of the season."

Edin Terzic bemoaned the way Borussia Dortmund were drawn into a "wild" Revierderby after Schalke twice came from behind to damage their rivals' title hopes in a dramatic 2-2 draw.

Dortmund were chasing a club record ninth consecutive Bundesliga win when they faced their fierce rivals on Saturday, having played their way into contention with Bayern Munich at the summit. 

While Nico Schlotterbeck's 38th-minute drive put them in the ascendency, Marius Buelter restored parity before Kenan Karaman did likewise after Raphael Guerreiro struck on the hour mark.

The result ended a run of four consecutive Revierderby wins for Dortmund, who sit two points adrift at the top of the table after Bayern's thrilling 5-3 win over Augsburg earlier on Saturday.

Speaking after the draw, Terzic said Schalke had succeeded in dragging Dortmund into an end-to-end contest, which worked to the relegation-threatened hosts' advantage.

"We said before the game that there were two options," Terzic said. 

"[Either] we get involved with Schalke's emotional and passionate game, and then it gets tight. Or we stay clear and try to win the game with football. 

"We showed that in the first half. We had a lot of good phases there, in which we controlled both the ball and the opponent. We were able to create a lot of clear chances. 

"We stopped that in the second half and then it got wild – just like Schalke wanted it to be. In the end we gave up the win and go home with a draw."

The draw means Schalke and Dortmund remain the only two Bundesliga teams to have gone unbeaten since the mid-season break, with Thomas Reis' men just one point adrift of safety after a run of seven games without defeat.

Borussia Dortmund boss Edin Terzic said the question of Youssoufa Moukoko's age had never come up in their many discussions, after it was claimed the striker could be four years older than he attests to being.

German publication Bunte this week questioned whether Moukoko was 18 years old, or whether he was 22, citing as evidence a birth certificate.

That was reportedly issued after the birth of a Youssoufa Mohamadou in Yaounde, Cameroon, with the child's date of birth given as July 19, 2000, and the father named as taxi driver Ousman Mohamadou.

Moukoko's stated date of birth is November 20, 2004, and it has been repeatedly asserted during his career that he lived for around 10 years with grandparents in Cameroon before moving to Germany in 2014 to join his father, Joseph Moukoko, in Hamburg.

Joseph Moukoko has insisted he is the player's father.

Bunte also quoted a lawyer for Dortmund youngster Moukoko as denying the player provided false age details, saying: "Youssoufa Moukoko's date of birth is November 20, 2004. This is confirmed by all the official documents that we have, along with his parents."

The teenage Moukoko was a revelation in his early years at Dortmund, scoring 127 goals in 84 appearances at youth level, earning a rapid promotion to the first-team squad.

He has since gone on to represent Germany and featured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup before signing a new Dortmund contract in January.

Terzic was asked in a press conference on Friday about the age debate circling Moukoko, and said: "I don't read Bunte. I exchange ideas with him intensively – I have never spoken to him about that. I can't confirm that it bothers him. The nasty foul in Bremen puts a strain on him."

As Terzic pointed out, Moukoko is out of action at present with an ankle injury sustained against Werder Bremen in February. It means he will miss Saturday's derby against Schalke.

Terzic said: "He's doing well in rehab, improving his performance and feeling better. We hope he will be available to us after the international break."

Dortmund are level on points with Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga with 11 rounds of games remaining.

Jude Bellingham labelled the refereeing in Borussia Dortmund's Champions League defeat at Chelsea a "joke", though he warned he would not talk himself into another fine.

Dortmund took a 1-0 lead to Stamford Bridge for the second leg on Tuesday after Karim Adeyemi's goal at Signal Iduna Park gave them the advantage in the round of 16 tie.

But Raheem Sterling equalised on aggregate in the 43rd minute, before Marius Wolf was adjudged to have handled Ben Chilwell's cross in the Dortmund box from close range shortly after the break.

Kai Havertz hit the post with his initial penalty, but a retake was ordered after a Dortmund player allegedly encroached, with Havertz making no mistake with the second spot-kick by sending Alexander Meyer the wrong way as Chelsea held on to dump Dortmund out.

Bellingham, who was fined €40,000 (£35,665) by the German Football Association (DFB) in 2021 for criticising referee Felix Zwayer, was unhappy with both the decision to award a penalty and the ruling of a retake, blaming Havertz's run-up for his team-mates edging into the area.

"From where I was it looked like he was pretty close and I'm not sure what more he can do with his hands," Bellingham told BT Sport. "It's a yard or two away.

"I don't want to get in trouble, I've paid enough to them lot.

"That in itself was disappointing, and then the fact they've had a retake I think is a joke. For every penalty, especially when you have such a slow run-up, there's going to be people encroaching into the box by a yard or so.

"But that's the game I suppose, he's made a decision and we have to live with it."

Dortmund head coach Edin Terzic was keen to focus on his team's shortcomings rather than blame the referee, though he also felt it was a tight call that went against his side.

"I'm responsible for the performance of our team and my performance," Terzic said. "I don't want to talk about the referee.

"It's now the third time your [media] colleagues are asking me the question. I think it was a tight call and a harsh decision but that's how it goes."

Despite the defeat, Terzic was proud of his players and pointed to Chelsea's huge spending in the transfer market as evidence of his team competing at the top level.

"Fair play to Chelsea and congratulations," Terzic added. "It was two very tight games and in the end, inches decide whether you go to the next round or not.

"We have enough quality in the team and that's the good thing. These two games, this is what we want. We don't want to compete with Chelsea in the transfer market, we want to compete with Chelsea on the matchday and I think we did it twice."

Edin Terzic called on Jude Bellingham to stand up and lead Borussia Dortmund in their "brutally difficult" Champions League task at Chelsea on Tuesday.

Dortmund head to Stamford Bridge for the second leg of their European last-16 clash with a 1-0 lead after Karim Adeyemi's second-half strike proved the difference in the first meeting.

Another heavyweight clash will provide Bellingham with a further chance to prove his worth on the biggest stage, having already impressed for England at the World Cup in Qatar.

The teenage midfielder remains a reported target of Liverpool and Real Madrid, as well as a host of Europe's elite, yet Bellingham's primary task will be helping Dortmund past Chelsea first.

Dortmund coach Terzic said at Monday's pre-match press conference: "Everyone knows his potential. He also had the opportunity to choose the Premier League when he came to us.

"But he chose Dortmund. He helps us and we help him. We're happy to have him with us, he's a leader of ours. We need a good performance from him."

Bellingham leads Dortmund's scoring charts with four goals in the Champions League this term, including a strike away at Manchester City in the group stages.

The 19-year-old could become the first Englishman in the history of the competition to score away from home against two different English sides.

However, Terzic acknowledged it will take a gutsy performance to overcome Chelsea despite Dortmund heading to England on a 10-match winning streak since the start of 2023.

"I don't think the form will decide tomorrow. It's a knockout game. We have a narrow lead," he added. "We are warned enough, we know what quality they have.

"We all know that sometimes 2-0 is not enough to go through. In the first leg, Chelsea didn't get the result they deserved, they caught us off guard a couple of times but didn't score.

"Then it becomes very dangerous. They showed that [in the Premier League] against Tottenham, against Leeds [United] and Southampton. It's going to be a brutally difficult task for us."

Chelsea had eight shots on target in the first leg, their highest number in a Champions League clash without scoring since Opta data began in 2003.

Graham Potter's side may have deserved more from the opening clash but Dortmund had Gregor Kobel's seven saves to thank – the most he has made in a single match in the competition.

Kobel has been out with a thigh injury and missed Friday's 2-1 Bundesliga victory over RB Leipzig, with Terzic refusing to make an early call on the goalkeeper's fitness for Chelsea.

"We will minimise the risk," Terzic said, before keeping his cards close to his chest and adding: "He has felt better every day."

Edin Terzic praised his team's defensive fortitude after Borussia Dortmund equalled a club record by securing an eighth consecutive Bundesliga victory with a 2-1 win over title rivals RB Leipzig, and a 10th overall.

Dortmund headed into Friday's game second to Bayern Munich only on goal difference after an imperious run of form since the return of domestic football following the Qatar World Cup.

Meanwhile, Leipzig, led by former Dortmund boss Marco Rose, were four points off top spot themselves and looking to move within striking distance of the top two.

After Julian Brandt had seen a goal ruled out for offside for the hosts, captain Marco Reus scored from the spot after being felled by Leipzig goalkeeper Janis Blaswich to put Dortmund ahead and move into second on the club's all-time goalscoring list.

Emre Can then saw a shot from the edge of the box somehow find its way in to give his team a commanding 2-0 lead at the break.

Leipzig improved after the break though and halved the deficit when Emil Forsberg slid in to turn David Raum's cross into the net, setting up a grandstand finish.

Rose's men piled on the pressure, and an incredible goal-saving block was needed from Nico Schlotterbeck to deny Timo Werner's powerful goal-bound effort in the dying seconds as Dortmund saw the game out for three points to move top, with Bayern not playing until Saturday when they face Stuttgart.

Terzic was delighted after watching his team's last-ditch defending pay off, telling DAZN: "That was an absolutely top game, we're very happy.

"We played very well in the first half, in the second half we defended passionately. We saved it over the line, it wasn't easy to score a goal against us today."

Reus was relieved to pick up a 10th straight win in all competitions despite Dortmund's low-key second-half display, saying: "In the second half we didn't manage to keep the ball, to get more solutions, that wasn't so good anymore. 

"But we're very happy to have won the 10th competitive game in a row. In the end, I'd rather win than play well and lose. It's all about hard work, we've shown that in the past few weeks and today."

Rose was frustrated by the loss after a much-improved performance in the second half, explaining: "The result is difficult to accept, the second half clearly went to us. 

"Dortmund were very efficient. It was a decent game from us at the back, I didn't feel like we were clearly inferior. Over 90 minutes, it's hard to accept losing a game like that."

Borussia Dortmund head coach Edin Terzic insists his team can manage the absence of Karim Adeyemi and is pleased fans can once again enjoy seeing BVB in a Bundesliga title race.

Dortmund will be without rapid forward Adeyemi for the next few weeks after he suffered torn muscle fibres in Sunday's 4-1 win over Hertha Berlin.

But Terzic is confident Donyell Malen – who scored in that game from the assist that led to Adeyemi's injury – can help to fill the void.

Terzic seemed relaxed at a press conference ahead of Saturday's trip to Hoffenheim, despite being without Adeyemi, who had scored in four successive appearances prior to his injury.

"Of course, it's not nice to do without someone who has not only played really well, but also had many important actions," he said. "He often scored the opening goal or was able to assist goals. Nevertheless, you mustn't forget now, he was suspended for two games in the cup and the league and we were able to play those two games successfully.

"Others took over his role. And last week, for example, Donyell Malen moved well into the team. He was in another position, but he showed a rise in form. And Jamie Bynoe-Gittens played in that position and had another great assist and a huge chance before that.

"So, we have enough ideas and options to react to this loss. Nevertheless, we're keeping our fingers crossed for Karim that it won't take too long and that we can quickly build on his strong performances again."

Dortmund have won all eight of their games since the World Cup break, including six in the league, seeing them move level on 43 points with Bayern Munich and Union Berlin in the top three positions.

However, Terzic pointed to the criticism his team received prior to the World Cup as reason to stay grounded.

"Of course, it's nice that the fans can enjoy this phase now," he told reporters. "After everything that has happened in the last few years, whether it was Covid or [how] many home games in the past that were not successful.

"It's about wanting to create that experience again, that people are up for seeing us play and can't wait to come back. And that is something we are happy about.

"Of course, we are now in a position where these questions will come. But we won't forget the position we were in. After the game [against Borussia Monchengladbach, a 4-2 loss] before the break, there were completely different questions, there were polls. 'Are Dortmund in a position to qualify for the Champions League?'

"And now it's just happening way too fast, and we've already said it: we're currently in a period of upheaval that we initiated in the summer, where we said we're far from finished. A lot will happen in the near future, and we simply must not forget that.

"Of course, we are happy about the way things are going now, but we won't win the game on Saturday just by being happy, but through hard work, a lot of focus, a lot of diligence. And that's what we can influence, and all the other things we simply can't influence. We can only focus on the result and the game on Saturday. And that's what we will do."

Borussia Dortmund head coach Edin Terzic acknowledged his side were fortunate to defeat Chelsea – but saw little reason to apologise for a fortuitous Champions League victory.

Chelsea dominated at the Signal Iduna Park but Karim Adeyemi's ruthless 63rd-minute strike ensured Dortmund will head back to Stamford Bridge on March 7 with a slender 1-0 lead in the last-16 tie.

Joao Felix twice spurned gilt-edged chances in the first half before Adeyemi broke away from a Chelsea corner to round Kepa Arrizabalaga and earn Dortmund a rare win over English opposition on Wednesday.

It marked the Bundesliga side's first win against an English team in European competition for 11 games, their last such victory against Tottenham in March 2016.

Terzic pinpointed Gregor Kobel, who made a personal Champions League record seven saves, as the difference as Dortmund rode their luck to snatch the advantage at the halfway point in the two-legged affair.

He told DAZN: "It's great to come out on the winning side.

"There was a little bit of luck involved and we had an exceptional goalkeeper.

"But there's no need to apologise after winning at home against Chelsea in the last 16.

"What we really needed was longer periods of possession. We won the ball well in midfield a lot, but then gave it away again too cheaply.

"There were a lot of good things, too – the best of which is the result – but we know it's not easy to play against Chelsea and we took a good step tonight."

Chelsea registered 21 shots to Dortmund's 14, with the Blues finding the target with eight of those compared to the hosts' two.

Graham Potter's men amassed an expected goals tally of 2.14 to Dortmund's 1.41 as well, suggesting Chelsea had higher quality chances, albeit they were unable to find a decisive strike.

While Kobel kept his 11th clean sheet in 23 games in all competitions this term, one more than the whole of last season (10 in 40 matches), Terzic felt Dortmund handed Chelsea the initiative too often.

"I feel like we defended our goal well but made it a little too easy for them to get into the final third at times," he added.

"If you saw how often we threw ourselves into challenges, how many shots we blocked, Chelsea have an incredible quality up front.

"But Gregor Kobel is in incredible form and we know when things get tight we can rely on him."

Edin Terzic has not discussed the future with Jude Bellingham and is focusing on improving the midfielder – along with Borussia Dortmund's latest 'next big thing' in Jamie Bynoe-Gittens.

Bellingham is set to be the most sought-after player in Europe when the transfer window opens at the end of the season.

Liverpool have been widely linked with the England international but are set to face competition from rivals in the Premier League and Champions League.

Dortmund have not given up hope of keeping Bellingham, sporting director Sebastian Kehl said this week, but that is not head coach Terzic's concern.

"He still has a long-term contract with us, and I never spoke about that with him," Terzic told The Telegraph.

"The only thing we talk about is improving his performance and to try to push him to find his limits. The rest – there will always be rumours, especially if you are a young, talented English player not playing in England."

Terzic is not yet sure of that limit – "he can achieve everything if he stays hungry," the coach added – but he is confident Bellingham will not be the last young player to trust Dortmund with his development.

Indeed, Bynoe-Gittens, another English teenager, left Manchester City for Dortmund in 2020 and broke into the BVB first team at the end of last season.

This season, winger Bynoe-Gittens has played just 281 Bundesliga minutes, but he has scored three goals – all as a substitute – and provided five secondary assists in that time.

Dortmund sit just three points behind leaders Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, and they come up against Chelsea in the Champions League on Wednesday.

"We have to produce the next big thing," Terzic said. "It's our way, and you see it started with Ousmane Dembele and Christian Pulisic, who stepped into this role, and then we created our own chain reaction.

"When you are ready to sign Jadon Sancho, he sees that Ousmane Dembele had a great time at the club. Then it makes it a bit easier to sign Erling Haaland.

"If you have Erling, you sign Jude, and if you have Jude, it's easier to sign Jamie."

Terzic is comfortable discussing Bynoe-Gittens in that company, adding of the 18-year-old: "Every time he's on the pitch, he's capable of making the difference, and at 18, it's something special to do that.

"We are sure he's going to be the next one we enjoy on the pitch."

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