Borussia Dortmund vs Hertha Berlin: Match Preview

Borussia Dortmund host Hertha Berlin aiming to advance to the quarter-finals of the DFB-Pokal.

Coming off a massive victory against emerging rivals RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund looks to keep the good times rolling with a quick turnaround at home. The match comes just days after a performance that has to be considered among the top three of the season to this point (Real Madrid and Bayern Munich matches as well).

Hertha Berlin, on the other hand, comes into the match off a victory of their own. They were victorious over FC Ingolstadt by the narrow score of 1-0 at home over the weekend. However, the other two matches of the post-winter break period have both been road losses.

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DFB-Pokal matches are always a bit of a wild card in that clubs take them with varying degrees of seriousness. In the past number of years, Borussia Dortmund has largely fielded strong sides during the later stages of the competition while Hertha Berlin may focus their attention more toward their effort to secure a Champions League birth.

With that being said, BVB finds themselves with a packed schedule upcoming with midweek action in the Champions League and a tight battle for their own Champions League spot. Those two factors have me questioning just how strong of a lineup Thomas Tuchel will field. The squad is deep so even normal second choice options like Felix Passlack and Shinji Kagawa are more than capable of carrying the day.

The match is being hosted by Borussia Dortmund so I would expect them to build on the success and intensity of the last match. The scrap against RB Leipzig was a physical gutting out of three points, giving me a good deal of confidence that BVB can win both high flying matches and those with decidedly lower scorelines.

Hertha Berlin typically lines up in a fairly defensive 4-2-3-1 with two defensive midfielders and those two combined with the two central defenders are the strength of the club. In the sixteen times that Hertha Berlin have used that formation, they have scored 27 goals but conceded just 15. I would expect a very similar approach to the match with two deep defensive midfielders cutting off passing lanes for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and preventing the in cutting Marco Reus, assuming they both play.

For that very reason, I might guess that Tuchel might opt for more out and out wingers to take the field. Perhaps Emre Mor gets a shot or more likely Christian Pulisic.

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On the defensive end, Borussia Dortmund will need to be cautious of Vedad Ibisevic who has scored 18 goals across the last year and a half in the Bundesliga. While Ibisevic on the surface doesn’t appear to have the physical tools to be a top-line striker, he just has a knack for finding a sliver of space for a shot or a finishing pass. Part of me thinks that if Sokratis plays, Ibisevic won’t be a problem, but the striker can be so slippery.

Ultimately, it is my belief that Borussia Dortmund will take the competition more seriously (likely only chance at silverware) and with the home field advantage being so stark, I can’t see them losing. The official BVB Buzz prediction is therefore 3-1 in favor of BVB.

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