Borussia Dortmund resume their 2026-27 Bundesliga season tonight at home against Werder Bremen, aiming to pick up from where they left off and extend their winning run to five games at the start of the league campaign for the first time since 2013.
The BVB had a large contingent away on national duty during the recent international window with as many as 20 players called up for the games, including five with youth teams. Without a surprise, a few of them have come back injured as fatigue took its tool on the players, who just cannot seem to catch a breather right now.
Niko Kovac had a routine pre-match press conference on Thursday where he addressed some of the prevailing fitness concerns within the camp.
On Nico Schlotterbeck
Kovac said:
"The plan is for Schlotti to train with the team tomorrow, and then we’ll see if he can play on Friday."
Schlotterbeck sustained a ligament injury to his right ankle during a training session with Germany's national team on 30 September. He subsequently missed their last two Nations League games against Serbia and Greece and doubts remain over his availability for tonight's game too. However, his injury isn't as serious as last time. According to German news outlet BILD, the defender will mostly return for their Champions League games away to Bodo/Glimt on Wednesday, 14 October.
On Ryerson
Kovac said:
"As for Ryerson, we’ll wait and see how things go tomorrow. "
Dortmund's assist-king Julian Ryerson went off just 16 minutes into their clash against Wales on 1 October after aggravating his rib injury and subsequently missed their visit to Portugal, three days later. However, he hasn't been completely ruled out of today's game either. But if he's passed fit, Ryerson could likely start from the bench.
On Chukwuemeka
Niko Kovac said:
"Carney has come back from Austria with some muscular problems."
Carney Chukwuemeka continued to gain valuable international experience during the recent international window which also yielded his first start for Austria, after having come off the bench in all previous eight appearances for them. He remained an unused substitute in their last game of the international break against Kosovo on 4 October and turns out, the midfielder has muscle issues.
Besides this triumvirate, Dortmund are also missing in Emre Can, as fresh reports suggest he isn't expected to return before January 2027 while Filippo Mane is still recovering from a muscle problem that forced him to miss their last two Bundesliga games before the international break, against Paderborn and Stuttgart.
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