Borussia Dortmund are back in action at the Signal Iduna Park after two disappointing results in the past week. Following a goalless draw and a Champions League defeat, Dortmund take on FC Koln in the Bundesliga this weekend.
Match Information
Date: September 17th
Time: 5:00 p.m CET/12:00 p.m EST
Venue: Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund
Matchup History
Borussia Dortmund and Fc Köln have met 84 times in their lengthy history. Der BVB have had the upper hand, winning 34 of those games. But in their last 6 encounters with Koln, they have come up with 2 losses and 4 draws. Even though Koln have had a rough start to the season, they are still a dangerous opponent.
Possible lineups:
Dortmund 4-3-3
Weidenfeller – Piszczek, Zagadou, Sokratis (c), Toljan – Weigl, Castro, Gotze – Yarmolenko, Aubameyang, Pulisic
Peter Bosz’ side are coming from a tough loss at Wembley on Wednesday, and will be hoping to bounce back at home against Fc Koln. It shouldn’t be a surprise to see veteran Weidenfeller take the start considering the club’s tight schedule playing 3 games in 9 days. It will also be better if Marc Bartra takes another rest and allows Zagadou to start in his natural CB position. Next, we could see young Jeremy Toljan returning to the starting lineup after a decent debut against Tottenham. Following up, a Weigl return seems almost certain and he should be playing alongside Castro and Gotze. Finally, in the attack, Yarmolenko could make his first league start following his stunning goal against Tottenham.
Köln 4-2-2-2
Horn – Klunter, Sørensen, Heintz, Rausch – Lehman (c), Jojic – Bittencourt, Risse – Cordoba, Osako
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Die Geißböcke will have star man Sørensen available after he sat out of the Europa League match. A key absence for Koln will be defender Jonas Hector who picked up an injury against Arsenal yesterday. Next, in the midfield, former BVB player Milos Jojic will see some playing time as he returns to the Signal Iduna Park. Finally, in the attack, Japanese striker Yuya Osako will try to break his goalless record this season besides Colombian Jhon Cordoba.
Final Prediction
Borussia Dortmund 2-1 Fc Koln
Peter Bosz’ men will return to their home turf after two tough away games. Coming away winless in both will have surely affected Dortmund and they will not settle for anything less than a win. On the other hand Koln are yet to win a Bundesliga match. This will be Koln’s toughest match-up yet so a win shouldn’t be expected. They provided a tough contest to Arsenal before succumbing in the second half in their Europa League tie. But after playing a day earlier, the home side will have a fresher squad. They will be rearing to go and get back to winning ways again. Der BVB will come out victorious in the end.