Following a difficult start to the campaign that saw them suffer three defeats in their opening four matches, many may have written off Borussia Mönchengladbach’s chances of a strong campaign. However, after steadying the ship, Gerardo Seoane has navigated the Foals into UEFA Champions League qualification contention, and the best may be yet to come…

Those aforementioned three losses were hardly how Seoane would have wanted to start the campaign, but a slightly closer look would indicate that all was not as it seemed. There are few harder tasks in European football right now than a game against Bayer Leverkusen, and only a last-minute Florian Wirtz penalty prevented Gladbach from picking up a point in the season's opening match.

Bochum were dispatched in the following game before back-to-back losses against VfB Stuttgart and Eintracht Frankfurt followed. Like Leverkusen, those two teams are in European competition this season, with the Eagles currently third in the league table after a stellar campaign. Quite frankly, Gladbach could hardly have asked for a more challenging first quartet of fixtures.

What ensued is more indicative of their progress this term. The next seven games produced 14 points and just one defeat as Gladbach moved up to sixth. Although they have since dropped a couple of positions, they have been consistently difficult to beat, besides a three-game January blip. However, again coming out second best to Bayern Munich, Wolfsburg and Leverkusen is hardly an embarrassment.

Watch: Gladbach's Hack at the double in Heidenheim

Having won four of their previous six encounters, Gladbach find themselves just four points adrift of Mainz in fourth. After a disappointing 14th-place finish in 23/24, few would have expected a continental push, but several key players' displays have made that possible.

The pick of the bunch is Tim Kleindienst, who has made Borussia a real offensive force. Only Harry Kane and Omar Marmoush have scored more than his 14 goals in the Bundesliga this term, a tally which also makes him the joint-top German goalscorer in Europe’s top five leagues alongside Jonathan Burkardt. The latest two of those strikes came on Matchday 24 in his side’s convincing 3-0 victory over former employers Heidenheim, a showing that underlines his continuing rise.

Now something of a Gladbach veteran, Alassane Pléa is always a threat and has chipped in with a healthy nine goal involvements (six goals, three assists) while Franck Honorat, Robin Hack and Kevin Stöger have provided the creativity that has allowed Kleindienst – himself with five assists to his name – to be so prolific.

Watch: Lukas Ullrich nominated for Rookie of the Month 

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In the middle of the park, the experienced Julian Weigl and summer arrival Phillip Sander have offered stability, and Ko Itakura has been impressive at the heart of a back four flanked by energetic full-backs Luca Netz and Joe Scally.

As time has advanced, Gladbach have improved steadily under Seoane. It was something of a gamble for the club to keep him on as head coach after that underwhelming 2023/24 term, while the summer 2023 departures of Jonas Hofmann, Lars Stindl, Ramy Bensebaini and Marcus Thuram left the Swiss without several big holes to fill. Having only lost Manu Koné nine months ago, the Foals were able to boost their squad rather than only replace what they had lost, and that has paid dividends.

With 10 matchdays remaining, Gladbach have put themselves in a fantastic position, although their credentials will face another test this weekend against high-flying Mainz, who are enjoying an unprecedented season under Bo Henriksen. In the reverse fixture, Gladbach held the 05ers to a 1-1 draw, a result that would do their objectives no harm should they be able to repeat it on Friday.

All told, The Foals are heading in the right direction, and the longer the team is able to gel, the more consistent and competitive they will become. One of Germany’s biggest clubs is back on the up, and that can only be a good thing for all concerned.

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Borussia Mönchengladbach

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