Dortmund out to scale 'Everest' of Euro final

LONDON (AFP) –

In this handout picture provided by UEFA, Borussia Dortmund head coach Jurgen Klopp smiles during a press conference in London on May 24, 2013. Klopp has said his team face their “Everest” in Saturday’s Champions League final, describing their showdown with Bayern Munich as the “perfect game in the perfect stadium”.

Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp has said his team face their “Everest” in Saturday’s Champions League final, describing their showdown with Bayern Munich as the “perfect game in the perfect stadium”.

Bayern walked away with this season’s Bundesliga title by a 25-point winning margin and are the clear favourites to win at Wembley in what will be a first all-German European Cup final.

While Klopp admits Dortmund will be the underdogs, this is their chance to scale the heights of European football and return to the Ruhr valley with their first Champions League title since 1997.

“People have tried to reach Everest in the past and had to turn back with 10 metres to go, it could be the same for us but this is our chance,” said the 45-year-old.

“No one is so good that they can be sure, Dortmund may reach other finals, whether I am part of the story, I don’t know.

“But we have to win the final tomorrow, that is the only story I am interested in.”

The two sides have already played each other four times this season: both Bundesliga matches ended in 1-1 draws while Bayern won February’s German Cup quarter-final 1-0 in Munich and enjoyed a 2-1 victory in pre-season.

Borussia Dortmund’s Head Coach Jurgen Klopp leads a training session at Wembley Stadium in London on May 24, 2013. While Klopp admits Dortmund will be the underdogs, this is their chance to scale the heights of European football and return to the Ruhr valley with their first Champions League title since 1997.

“It will be an absolutely special game, we have met them four times this season. At the moment the game feels normal but we will feel the difference tomorrow (Saturday),” said Klopp.

“It’s one game which nobody wants to lose or walk away from having given it up, whether it’s 90 or 120 minutes, both teams want to take their chance.

“It’s always a big thing when two teams from one country play in the final.

“If this is the only final I play in my career, this is the perfect stadium and the perfect opponent.

“If I die in 60 years time and this was it, it won’t have been so bad.”

Klopp has admitted it “felt like a heart attack” when he heard that star midfielder Mario Goetze will join Bayern next season, while there are reports striker Robert Lewandowski will also head to Munich at the end of the current campaign.

Having won the Bundesliga title in the previous two seasons before this one, Klopp has built Dortmund into serious rivals for big-spending Bayern with a young, talented squad, which is the pride of the Ruhr area.

“Football is more of a religion there than in other regions,” said Klopp.

“Bayern Munich is a fantastic club, with many fans, they are in a success rut and rarely finish worse than third or fourth in the Bundesliga, I can’t remember them being lower.”

That was not the case a few years ago with Dortmund, who only narrowly avoided bankruptcy in 2005.

Borussia Dortmund’s Head Coach Jurgen Klopp (C) talks to his players during a training session at Wembley Stadium in London on May 24, 2013.

Klopp added: “Now they have a rival. It nearly ended up in a fiasco and our stadium could have been an empty shrine, but due to several smart people the club has risen from the ashes.

“It’s a good story but there are other clubs in the Ruhr valley who can spend money to try and fill their stadium, but we have to take different decisions and do things differently.

“This team has been grown over the last five years, we think it could only be done in this club and that is why things are a bit more emotional for us.

“It would be a shame if anyone left us, tomorrow we have a pretty important goal.”

Klopp said Dortmund’s strategy to win the final is simple.

“We have to bring them down to our level, if we do that, then we can beat them,” he said.

“We have always had to do more than Bayern Munich if we have wanted to beat them in the last few years.”