Borussia Dortmund have announced their lineup for the final Bundesliga game of the 2025-26 season against Werder Bremen and there are a few surprises.
Head coach Niko Kovac has fielded Felix Nmecha in the starting XI for the first time since March as the midfielder was sidelined for the past few months with a torn ligament.
He made a return to matchday squad last weekend against Eintracht Frankfurt and played for 16 minutes after being brought on in the dying embers of the clash.
Tonight, Nmecha replaces the experienced Marcel Sabitzer in the lineup and it could do a world of good for the former as he also hopes to make it to Julian Naglesmann's Germany squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Tonight, the 25-year-old starts for the first time since their 3-2 win over Hamburg on 21 March. Furthermore, Samuele Inacio makes his sixth appearance in a row.
The young Italian dynamite scored against the Eagles for his first strike in Dortmund colors and Kovac has rewarded him for that with a place in the lineup for the third time on the bounce.
However, the big news was Julian Brandt on the bench. The departing midfielder is set for a Dortmund swansong tonight and it looks like he will come off the bench for his final appearance.
So could Niklas Sule, who is set to retire from professional football. He was called on in the closing stages of the Frankfurt game to play in front of home crowd for one last time.
Tonight, the former Bayern Munich defender could be set for something similar in his last game as a professional footballer. Karim Adeyemi, who also returned to the squad on the last matchday, is on the bench again.
The 24-year-old had missed their last few games with a muscular problem but recovered to feature on the penultimate matchday as Adeyemi replaced Brandt for the last 16 minutes.
Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel keeps his place in between the sticks as the Swiss international hopes to pick up his 15th clean sheet of the league season on the final day.
The Nico Schlotterbeck, Waldemar Anton and Luca Reggiani trio remain unchanged at the back while Serhou Guirassy will lead the line once more ahead of Fabio Silva.
Borussia Dortmund's Confirmed Lineup vs Werder Bremen
Gregor Kobel; Lucas Reggiani, Waldemar Anton, Nico Schlotterbeck; Julian Ryerson, Felix Nmecha, Jobe Bellingham, Daniel Svensson; Maximilian Beier, Samuele Inacio; Serhou Guirassy.
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