A year after finishing seventh with a boost from a late surge during Jurgen Klopp’s last days as manager, Borussia Dortmund have gotten off to an impressive start under Thomas Tuchel. They’ve won each of their first two Bundesliga by a score of 4-0 and came back from 3-0 down to beat Odd Grenland 4-3 in their Europa League qualifying playoff. And they’ve done this while not being allowed to eat pizza, pasta, or any other delicious carbohydrates.

From Raphael Honigstein’s piece in the Guardian about Dortmund and their new Guardiola disciple in charge:

“It’s been a promising start but it would be too early to cultivate any sort of hopes,” said [captain Mats Hummels], who had admitted to comfort-eating during last year’s hellish campaign. It is unclear how much of an impact Tuchel’s ban on long-standing, much-loved pizza and pasta deliveries to the Dortmund training ground by a local restaurateur have had on the team’s fresh appetite for destruction – Tuchel has stopped eating carbohydrates altogether – but to the naked eye, Dortmund look as lean and mean as they did at the peak of their powers in 2012.

A new dietary regime, a new fitness coach and a new – or perhaps renewed – attention to small details on the pitch have all played their part in restoring the club to their position as the second super-power in German football.

Is a return to the top of the table worth living a life without pizza? Obviously not. If Dortmund win the title this year, they will be the most miserable champions in history.