Borussia Dortmund play their last official game of 2025 at home to Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga on Friday. Following what's been a difficult year by all accounts, Der BVB will be hoping to wrap it up on a positive note as their league run remains disappointing right now.
Last weekend, Niko Kovac's team conceded a late equalizer against Freiburg as the match ended 1-1, the fifth time that Dortmund drew in the German top-flight this season from 14 games. It saw the gap between them and runaway leaders Bayern Munich extend to nine points now as the Yellow and Blacks have 29 in the bag while occupying third position in the table.
But they'd be happy to see their next opponents are eight places adrift of them on the Bundesliga table with just four wins and 16 points. In their most recent outing, Wolfsburg inflicted them with a 3-1 defeat at the Borussia Park, Gladbach's sixth league defeat of the season.
Dortmund team news vs Gladbach
Kovac will be unable to call upon many of his key players for the clash due to injuries. That includes defensive stalwart Waldemar Anton, who is currently nursing a hamstring injury and will miss their second consecutive league game of the season. Aaron Anselmino is dealing with the same issue and he too is unavailable.
Midfield maestro Julian Brandt has ankle problems and will sit out of the clash once again, whereas Marcel Sabitzer too sits out with muscle stiffness. Salih Ozcan is injured too.
Remi Bensebaini has been called upon by Algeria's national team for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and will hence be unavailable due to international commitments.
Furthermore, Jobe Bellingham is suspended after picking up a red card in their 1-1 draw to Freiburg last weekend.
How Dortmund could lineup against Gladbach
With two centre-backs missing in action, Kovac could go with Niklas Sule alongside Emre Can and Nico Schlotterbeck in the back-three.
The midfield too could see a shake-up with Pascal Gross and Julian Svensson coming in , while out-of-form Serhou Guirassy could keep his place up top.
The Guinean has a good record against Gladbach though, netting four times from seven games, including one with Dortmund in the exact fixture last term.
Borussia Dortmund's probable XI: Gregor Kobel; Niklas Sule, Emre Can, Nico Schlotterbeck; Julian Ryerson, Felix Nmecha, Pascal Gross, Julian Svsensson; Fabio Silva, Carney Chukwuemeka; Serhou Guirassy.