Rewind the clock back 10 months to the final Bundesliga games of 2014, and things were looking pretty dire for Borussia Dortmund. The football club had dipped to second-to-last place in the German top-flight and had only won three league fixtures in the past three months. It wasn't entirely clear what the problem was, but BVB, under the normally dependable management of Jurgen Klopp, had lost their groove. But the Borussia Dortmund recovery under Thomas Tuchel has been dramatic, with this season's performances offering a massive departure from those of 2014.

Making a Comeback

Now, with former FSV Mainz manager Thomas Tuchel in the driver's seat, it looks like Borussia Dortmund has found a new groove. Even considering a 1-5 loss against Bayern Munich on October 4th, the Black and Yellows have been one of the big success stories of the German football season so far. They won their first five Bundesliga fixtures, scoring big three or four-point wins against normally tough soccer teams like Borussia Monchengladbach and Bayer Leverkusen.

Indeed, for the first month of the 2015 2016 Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund were the top team in the league, ahead of even the all-powerful Bayern Munich. They stumbled in weeks six and seven, settling for draws against Hoffenheim and Darmstadt, and lost big to Munich in week eight. However, the Black and Yellows bounced back on October 16th, beating Tuchel's former club FSV Mainz. Bottom line, it's a good time to be a Borussia Dortmund fan.

Tuchel's Tactics

So how has Tuchel managed to take a team that collapsed just a year ago, and build them back into a legitimate title contender?

To be fair, Jurgen Klopp had already done some of the legwork before resigning his role as head coach last spring. After his team fell all the way to 18th place in the Bundesliga in January, Klopp managed to turn things around, ultimately coaching BVB back up to seventh place on the league standings table. The football team even earned qualification into the UEFA Europa League for the 2015 2016 campaign-no small feat, given the fact that Dortmund had spent much of the season in danger of relegation.

While Klopp figured out how to compensate for the absence of Robert Lewandowski and Mario Gotze-both of whom left Dortmund for Bayern Munich during the summer of 2014-Tuchel has offered the fresh coaching style necessary to take the Black and Yellows into a completely new era.

In other words, it wasn't Klopp's fault that the 2014 2015 Dortmund soccer team fell apart. No coach on the planet could have done well with what Klopp had to work with. Still, it was clear that BVB could no longer live in the past, hoping for a repeat of the 2012 2013 season. Lewandowski was particularly irreplaceable, which put the Black and Yellows in need of a significant play style adjustment.

Tuchel has used his fresh perspective to provide that adjustment. By rotating players to keep them fresh, he's cut down on his soccer club's injuries. By emphasizing fluidity instead of strict tactical formulation, he's made it possible for Dortmund to adapt on the fly and better exploit their opponents' weaknesses.

Perhaps most importantly, Tuchel's fresh passion and enthusiasm has rubbed off on his players. They look faster, fitter, happier, and more dynamic on the field than they have in years-particularly Marco Reus and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who is keeping pace with Robert Lewandowski on the Bundesliga top scorer charters. Aubameyang was one of the lone bright spots of the Borussia Dortmund squad last season, but he's doing even better this year under the direction of Tuchel.

What do you think of the new Borussia Dortmund? Do you think Tuchel could turn the football club into a title challenger this season? Or will we have to wait until 2017 or 2018 to see the Black and Yellows back in the running for the top of the podium? Only time will tell, but you can support BVB today by picking up a brand new Borussia Dortmund shirt 2015 2016 from the Soccer Box store!