Kovac confident Bellingham brothers will meet
Niko Kovac is sure Jobe Bellingham will get to go up against his sibling Jude down the line.
Borussia Dortmund beat Mexican club Monterrey 2-1 to set up a Club World Cup quarter-final against Real Madrid.
Serhou Guirassy scored both of Dortmund's goals. Indeed, the striker was the only player to have a shot for BVB, registering six overall.
While Dortmund prepares to go up against Los Blancos, it will have to manage without Jobe Bellingham, who was booked against Monterrey, picking up his second yellow card of the tournament.
It means he is suspended for the Madrid game, dashing hopes of a meeting of the Bellingham brothers.
"I think we all saw that he [Jobe Bellingham] was very disappointed," Kovac said. "I think he did not exactly know that the second yellow card is a suspension at half-time. He was a little bit surprised.
"OK, he's young. His brother is also young so I'm convinced they will face each other, maybe next season in the Champions League and then the future. The future is for them.
"The Club World Cup would be nice but now it isn't. Someone else must play for him but it's also okay."
Kovac feels Dortmund has over-performed across the tournament, but emphasised that it is a huge achievement for his team to be in the last eight.
"I think we overperformed. We passed the group stage," Kovac said. "This is now on top.
"This is a bonus for us, and now playing against the biggest team and biggest club in the world is a good challenge.
"I think that for us, Borussia Dortmund, and also for German football as a whole, this is a big, big deal."
Dortmund's clash with Madrid sees them face a coach they are familiar with.
Xabi Alonso is four games into his Madrid tenure, and Kovac knows what to expect.
"We know very well. So he worked two and a half years in Germany, and he did a fantastic job," Kovac said of Alonso.
"Now he's implementing everything he had in Leverkusen at Real Madrid. So we're expecting the same what we had in Leverkusen, only with different players.
"We're looking forward to it but you have to play football for 90 minutes, and if we put everything onto the pitch, same performance as we saw today, I think that we will have a good chance."
