Socceroo keeper Mitch Langerak says he's proud of Borussia Dortmund's creative approach to the transfer market and believes they can still compete with Bayern Munich on the field despite being outmuscled financially.
Australian goalkeeper Langerak, discovered at Hyundai A-League club Melbourne Victory and brought to the Westfalenstadion at a bargain price in 2010, is emblematic of Dortmund's resourcefulness when it comes to putting together a winning team on a budget.
The BVB faithful have had to get used to seeing their prized assets succumb to the riches on offer at Bayern Munich in recent seasons, with first Mario Gotze and then Robert Lewandowski defecting to the reigning champions.
"Obviously Bayern, they always buy the top players and they can always bring in the best players. That's their way of doing things. Our club's a little bit different," Langerak told Goal Australia.
"Of course Bayern, traditionally, they've always been so strong and they've always got one, two, three world-class players. At the moment their whole squad is world class.
"It's something they've got to their advantage. But in saying that, in one-off games when we play against them, it's always 50-50 and we always have a very good chance."
While Klopp is able to pay significant sums for players on occasion, expect plenty more hidden gems and promising youngsters to be unearthed in the years to come, while 'FC Hollywood' continue to splash the cash at the Allianz Arena.
"For me personally, to be a part of it and to know I came from Australia and went to Dortmund ... players like Shinji Kagawa came from the second league in Japan to Dortmund and killed it," Langerak said.
"There are other stories of other players. Henrikh Mkhitaryan, he's come from Shakhtar Donetsk, not exactly unknown, he was playing Champions League. However, not exactly a world class name at that point.
"So yeah, it is a source of pride to be involved in that."
Dortmund and Bayern meet in the German Super Cup next week, which will afford supporters a glimpse of what to expect from the next instalment in what has become a fascinating rivalry between the two super powers in the last four years.
"I think it'll be an interesting season," Langerak said.
"In the last Bundesliga game we beat Bayern 3-0 in Munich. In the Pokal (final) ... it was 0-0 and then they beat us 2-0 in extra-time. It was obviously very tight, on a knife-edge most of the time.
"I think if we play the way we can ... by no means was the season for us a failure. It's just that Bayern were another gear, another level above. I wouldn't say we'll go out and win the Bundesliga but I definitely think we'll give it a good shake."