Bundesliga Preview: FC Nuremberg vs Borussia Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund will be aiming to get back to winning ways as they take on bottom club FC Nuremberg on Monday.

After four games without a win, the pressure is on Borussia Dortmund heading into Monday’s clash. Lucien Favre’s side have been eliminated from the DFB Pokal and lie on the brink of Champions League elimination, while Bayern have reduced their lead at the top to just two points. And anything other than a win against Nuremberg could signal a crisis for the Black and Yellows.

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Borussia Dortmund

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Borussia Dortmund imploded in the second half on Wednesday consigning them to a 3-0 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley stadium. With Bayern Munich breathing down their necks and looking to pounce, Lucien Favre will know that anything other than a resounding victory on Monday will be a disappointing result for Borussia Dortmund. While Dortmund are scoring goals freely, they have conceded three goals in each of their last three appearances, so Favre will be hoping to sort out the defensive woes starting with a clean sheet on Monday.

FC Nuremberg

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Nuremberg have only taken 12 points from 21 games so far and haven’t tasted victory since September. They lie bottom of the table, three points adrift of the relegation play-off spot and six behind 15th placed Augsburg. Head coach Michael Köllner and sporting director Andreas Bornemann paid the price for their woes earlier this week, as they were both sacked, meaning assistant coach Boris Schommers and club legend Marek Mintal will take charge of the game on Monday.

Team News

The game will come too soon for Dortmund captain Marco Reus, who is currently out with a groin injury. Vice captain Lukasz Piszczek is out as well with a heel injury. But Julian Weigl (cold) and Paco Alcacer (shoulder) have resumed training and could return to the side after missing Wednesday’s game. Manuel Akanji is back in training but is not ready to feature just yet. While Christian Pulisic suffered an injury against Tottenham, and has not traveled with the squad to Bavaria. New signing Leonardo Balerdi was an unused substitute on Wednesday and could make his debut against Nuremberg.

Last Match: Borussia Dortmund 7-0 Nuremberg

The reverse fixture saw Borussia Dortmund hit SEVEN goals past a hapless Nuremberg side in September, with Jacob Bruun Larsen, Marco Reus (x2), Achraf Hakimi, Manuel Akanji, Jadon Sancho and Julian Weigl all getting on the scoresheet for the Black and Yellows. It was a ruthlessly dominant display by the Black and Yellows, who turned on the style and thrashed a hapless Nuremberg side. The win kick-started Borussia Dortmund’s title bid, and now five months later they will be hoping for another big win against the relegation threatened side.

Possible Lineups

Borussia Dortmund: Burki – Hakimi, Zagadou, Toprak, Diallo – Witsel, Delaney – Sancho, Philipp, Guerreiro, Gotze

Nuremberg: Mathenia – Valentini, Margreitter, Ewerton, Leibold – Misidjan, Behrens (c), Petrak, Palacios – Pereira, Ishak