Bayern could be perfect opponents for Klopp's struggling Dortmund

It is actually precisely the issue that has afflicted them. They just need to approach it from the opposite perspective.

Sometimes, a sport like football simply defies logic and expectation.

That is what they must hope for as they visit Bayern Munich, but there is at least an example they can try to replicate.

That example just happened to take place on this exact week nine years ago.

Back at the beginning of November 2005, the entire Alex Ferguson era at Manchester United had seemed to be terminally unravelling. Roy Keane had just played the pundit and thereby ensured he had played his last game for the club. The team was consumed by controversy, and a lot of problems. United had lost 4-1 to Middlesbrough in the league and 1-0 to Lille in the Champions League. It seemed undeniable that Ferguson had lost his touch and that he was set to lose the next game too. That match? Jose Mourinho's Chelsea, who were on the most emphatic winning streak. They had claimed victory in all of the opening nine league games.

It was quite the contrast... but set up quite the shock. Darren Fletcher scored. A beleaguered United won.

If it wasn't for the kind of qualities that the manager had hard-wired into his team, you might have said the result defied logic.

The latter certainly applies to Dortmund's season so far, but the wonder is whether Juergen Klopp's hardwired ideals will be sparked into action against Bayern. They have lost four in a row in the Bundesliga and six of their opening nine games, but never actually looked that bad. When this was put to Mats Hummels, he summed up the situation, even if he couldn't sum up the problems. “It’s inexplicable.”

That is how everyone at the club is feeling, from the board to Klopp. It is all the more worrying because they've been playing well, dominating teams, doing everything they should - except score.

This dismal run of form wouldn't be so bad if there was something that could obviously be fixed, some principal reason for the profound loss of form.

Dortmund can't even blame the recurring injury crisis in the manner they might have, given that most absentees have now returned.

Yet, despite the fact their fitness programme by now requires severe scrutiny, the issues have almost been more mental than physical.

Two things from this stunning run stand out. The first is that, although the expectation every week is that it just has to level out and get better, it keeps getting worse. The second thing ties into the first, given how different things are to just over a year ago.

Back at the peak of the Dortmund revolution, Klopp proudly spoke of how his team were "monsters of mentality". Regardless of what was going on, from setbacks to big sales, they apparently had the psychological fortitude to persevere. It was difficult to disagree, especially when they drove into the 2013 Champions League final despite the announcement of Mario Goetze's departure to Bayern, or, in fact, the manner in which they put it up Real Madrid in last season's quarter-final second leg.

Compare all that to now.

After the latest defeat, 1-0 at home to Hanover, Klopp said the following: “The reason why things turn out the way they turn out at the moment has to do with our long bad run.”

In other words, they were the very opposite of monsters of mentality. The issues on their collective minds were monstering them.

Like so many sides that endure bad runs, they've anxiously tried to end it by forcing things, but that has only perpetuated the problems.

It revealed much about Dortmund's fragile mental state that, for the match at home to Hanover, they asked for special dispensation to wear their Champions League shirts. The idea was that it would restore confidence, especially since they've look so smooth in Europe.

It didn't work. It does, however, emphasise that elements of this may be no more than a quirk; an unhappy coincidence. It has certainly seemed like that from some of Dortmund's games. They've done everything right but score.

While these mishaps can foster a lack of belief, it often only takes an abrupt jolt to set things right; something to suddenly realign things.

There aren't many jolts like a trip to Bayern. The danger is that Pep Guardiola's side could pull Dortmund completely out of shape.

That is a prospect to consume the minds of Klopp's squad. That might be precisely what they need.