DORTMUND, Germany -- Sporting director Michael Zorc has slammed Borussia Dortmund for being too reckless in front of goal after a 3-0 home win over Hamburg on Tuesday.
Gonzalo Castro, Shinji Kagawa and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored as Dortmund stayed fourth in the Champions League playoff place with the win, a point behind Hoffenheim.
But the 54-year-old Zorc hinted at BVB's lack of killer instinct after the match, saying: "You have to be happy with the result, but we made life hard for ourselves over long stretches of the game."
Despite the 3-0 final score, Zorc made no secret of his disgruntlement, adding: "We were too reckless. We were careless in possession. We had easy giveaways and squandered too many chances up front. I would have liked it better if we had shown more concern for the result and for the ball [possession]. It wasn't completely satisfying today."
Dortmund kept the guests alive, squandering at least five sitters until Kagawa doubled the lead in the 81st minute. Aubameyang then added a third in stoppage time.
Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel shared the sentiments of his sporting director after the game, telling his postgame news conference: "It's a recurring pattern that we cannot set the final blow when we're 1-0 up.
"At some point, the feeling crept in that this match is destined to end in a draw. You could see that the game changed entirely once we've scored the second goal. So we cannot just be happy about the 3-0 scoreline, but have to be critical of ourselves."
Zorc, meanwhile, only reiterated his criticisms from Saturday's match, when a wasteful Dortmund failed to grab all three points in a 1-1 draw away to Schalke and plummeted back to fourth place in the table behind Hoffenheim.
Nervousness is growing among the BVB bosses, as the direct Champions League qualification remains a growing uncertainty for the club after 27 rounds. Hoffenheim kept the Black and Yellows one point behind in the table by defeating Bayern Munich 1-0 at home on Tuesday.
Zorc said: "You can see how hard it'll be for us to achieve our season objective to directly qualify for the Champions League, as all teams at the top of the table are consistently picking up points. We cannot afford another slip-up."
Tuchel did, however, have some praise to share on Tuesday as the German boss singled out Kagawa for his contributions afterward.
"Shinji is in a top form at the moment," Tuchel said of the 28-year-old. "He's top professional at all times. He's one of the best pros you can wish for. Shinji is always there, he deals with criticism extremely well, he handles pressure well."
Kagawa was a fringe player throughout most parts of the season who only racked up five league starts between Matchday 1 and 23. But he has rediscovered top form ever since BVB's 2-1 loss away to Hertha Berlin on March 11. The attacking midfielder has started in each of the five matches across all competitions, grabbing three of his four season assists in that period.
Tuchel added: "You can wake up Shinji at 3 a.m. in the morning, and he will convert the first penalty [in a penalty shootout] in the Allianz Arena [away to Bayern]. He has played important matches in his career, he is an experienced player. He's always there when you need him, which is why it's a great gift to be his coach.
"I'm happy that he is taking responsibility at the moment. He also never complains when things aren't going his way, when he's fallen behind in the depth chart. He never takes it personally.
"The entire Sudtribune is rightfully celebrating him. He's a big factor in games like today's, be it as a starter or as a substitute because he is always giving his all and also because he is very important defensively."
Dortmund will play away to Bayern next on Saturday in their battle to reclaim a top-three spot in the Bundesliga, before hosting the Champions League quarterfinal against AS Monaco on Wednesday.