Bundesliga Preview: Borussia Dortmund vs VFL Wolfsburg
Borussia Dortmund return from the international break with a classic encounter against VFL Wolfsburg. Lucien Favre and his men have slowly begun recovering from their stretch of poor results and will be looking to pick up some momentum for their penultimate clash against Bayern Munich next week.
Match information
Location: Westfalenstadion
Date: 30/3/2019
Time: 3.30pm CET/2.30pm GMT/10.30am ET
Recent form:
Borussia Dortmund
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The Black and Yellows edged past Hertha Berlin by the skin of their teeth thanks to a late Marco Reus goal. During the international break the stars of Dortmund have shined with Jadon Sancho stealing the spotlight. The young Englishman set up Raheem Sterling for England’s opening goal in a comprehensive 5-0 over the Czech Republic. Captain Marco Reus provided two assists setting up Nico Schulz and Leon Goretzka. Other notable performances were that of Christian Pulisic who gave the United States and early lead against Chile but picked up an injury during the same game.
VFL Wolfsburg:
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Wolfsburg recovered from their 6-0 hammering by Bayern Munich with a 5-2 victory over Fortuna Dusseldorf. They currently sit in 7th place and will be hoping to pick up all three points in their quest for a Europa League spot. The Wolves will be without Ignacio Camacho but will be hoping to see Daniel Ginczek make his return to the squad. Wolfsburg are winless against Borussia Dortmund at the Westfalenstadion since 2012 but that won’t stop them from bringing their best this weekend.
Team News
Borussia Dortmund will be without right-back Lukasz Piszczek whose absence has been truly felt by the club. Alcacer, Witsel, and Gotze all made a return to training this week but it all depends on Favre if they are back to full match fitness and start on Saturday. Christian Pulisic picked up a thigh injury over the international break and early reports indicate he will miss a minimum of 3 weeks.
Opposition Star Man: Wout Weghorst
The Dutchman played a hand in all of Wolfsburg’s five goals in their 5-2 victory over Dusseldorf. With 12 goals and 5 assists, this season Weghorst is truly at the top of his game. He has been compared to other prolific Wolfsburg goalscorers such as Bas Dost and Edin Dzeko. He will certainly keep the Dortmund defence busy as he has one of the highest work rates of all players in the Bundesliga. He combines well with Daniel Ginczek, and apart from his eye for goal he can also set up teammates when needed.
Last match: VFL Wolfsburg 0-1 Borussia Dortmund
Marco Reus was the hero for the Black and Yellows as a 27th-minute goal was enough to seal all three points for Dortmund. There were plenty of chances that were created but not taken which could have easily lead to one or two more goals. Wolfsburg pressed hard to find an equalizer at the end, but the Dortmund defence was rock solid throughout the entire game.
Probable line-ups
Dortmund: Bürki – Hakimi, Akanji, Zagadou, Diallo – Witsel, Gotze – Sancho, Reus (c), Guerreiro – Alcacer
Wolfsburg: Casteels – William, Knoche, Brooks, Roussillon – Gerhardt, Guilavogui (c), Arnold – Mehmedi – Weghorst, Brekalo