Wednesday 24 April 2013 11:17, UK
On the flight over to Germany, the Sky Sports staff were discussing the relative merits of this year's Champions League semi-finalists.
And you simply had to scan the back (and front) pages when we touched down in Germany on Tuesday morning for more proof of that superiority. The sports pages were dominated by the news that Mario Gotze, one of Dortmund's brightest young players, has been lured to the Allianz Arena this summer for £32million. Manager Jurgen Klopp did not seem angry when discussing the transfer during Tuesday's press conference, rather shrugging his shoulders at the way things are. Indeed, the enigmatic coach has also been cast admiring glances from many of Europe's top clubs, as has striker Robert Lewandowski, and it would not be surprising if all three were gone by the start of next season. While Dortmund regularly appear in Forbes' list of the world's 20 richest football teams, it's hard for them to escape the tag of being a selling club. They are the only German football club publically traded on the stock market and financial prudence will often take priority over improving the team. That's understandable when you survey their recent history. Poor financial management at the turn of the century forced them to sell their ground and today it bears the name of insurance company Signal Iduna. The financial problems led to inconsistency on the field and they have only reached the Champions League seven times in the 16 seasons since they won it. Borussia Dortmund is a club of paradoxes; the huge stadium and fanbase belies their financial insecurity; their tremendous recent domestic and European success belies the inferiority complex that seems to persist about the club. But if they overcome Real Madrid and claim a second Champions League title at Wembley next month, then maybe they can convince themselves - and everybody else - that they have a right to that seat at the top table. Borussia Dortmund v Real Madrid is live on Sky Sports 2 HD from 7pm on Wednesday with Interactive Commentary available at www.skysports.com/championsleague
