Borussia Dortmund will face off against Freiburg at Signal Iduna Park in Bundesliga on Friday night.
Edin Terzic’s side are currently unbeaten in their last nine encounters in all competitions, but among those games, they have won only three. They will be coming into this fixture after drawing against Heidenheim and following that result, they are currently fourth in the table with 37 points from 20 games, sitting only one point ahead of the fifth-placed RB Leipzig. So, Dortmund will need to win the game on Friday to keep their place in the top-four spot.
On the other hand, Freiburg are seventh in the league with 28 points from 20 games. The visitors have endured back-to-back defeats ahead of this fixture so they are currently short of confidence.
But, Christian Streich’s side will be desperate to return to winning ways by coming away victorious on Friday. So, Dortmund will have to be at their best to win this encounter.
Previous meetings
Dortmund have had a great record against their Friday’s opponent, winning 15 of the last 20 games in the Bundesliga and losing only two. In addition, BVB have been unbeaten against Freiburg at Signal Iduna Park since 2001.
Dortmund have won the last three games versus Freiburg at Signal Iduna Park by a four-goal margin. So, the hosts will be hoping to continue their impressive record versus Freiburg on Friday.
How to watch
The game will kick off at 7:30pm UK time and the match will be televised live on Sky Sports in the UK.
Those fans who want to watch all the action in person can get hold of Borussia Dortmund tickets through the club or via trusted online resellers.
Team news
Dortmund have a few injury problems ahead of this encounter as Kelix Nmecha and Karim Adeyemi are set to remain sidelined due to their respective problems. In addition, Jadon Sancho was out injured in the last game and he could be unavailable for selection on Friday as well.
Marco Reus, Julian Brandt and Gregor Kobel have struggled with illness in recent weeks and as a result of that, they couldn’t feature over the last few games. So, it is now going to be interesting to see whether they return to action in this fixture.
Thomas Meunier has secured his move to Turkey – where the transfer window is still open – so he isn’t in contention to feature in this encounter. Giovanni Reyna has joined Nottingham Forest on deadline day so he isn’t going to feature on Friday.
Sebastian Haller is currently out with his national team Ivory Coast playing in the AFCON so he will also be unavailable for selection in this game.
As for Freiburg, they will be without Matthias Ginter, Philipp Lienhart and Daniel-Kofi Kyereh due to their respective injury problems. Additionally, Merlin Rohl is suspended for this game having picked up a red card last time out.
However, the good news for the visitors will be that Ritsu Doan is back available following Japan’s elimination from the AFC Asian Cup.
Predicted line-up
Terzic could opt to go with the 4-2-2-2 formation in this fixture and Alexander Meyer could be in goal for the hosts. Niklas Sule and Nico Schlotterbeck are likely to be the centre-back pairing for BVB so Matt Hummels might have to settle for a place on the bench once again in this fixture. Mateu Morey is likely to start in the right-back position following Meunier’s departure, while Ian Maatsen should be on the opposite side.
Salih Ozcan and Marcel Sabitzer are expected to be in the midfield pivot position with Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Donyell Malen likely to be on the flanks. Youssoufa Moukoko and Niclas Fullkrug may lead the line for Dortmund on Friday night.
Expected Borussia Dortmund line-up vs Freiburg
Meyer; Morey, Sule, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen; Ozcan, Sabitzer; Bynoe-Gittens, Malen; Moukoko, Fullkrug
For Freiburg, Streich is expected to go with the 4-2-3-1 formation with Noah Atubolu expected to be in goal. Manuel Gulde and Noah Weißhaupt could be the centre-back pairing, while Lukas Kubler and Jordy Makengo should be the two fullbacks.
Maximilian Eggestein and Nicolas Hofler might be in the engine room, pushing Roland Sallai in the attacking midfield position. Doan could be in right-wing, while Vincenzo Grifo should be on the opposite flank. Lucas Holer should lead the line for Freiburg on Friday.
Expected Freiburg line-up vs Borussia Dortmund
Atubolu; Kubler, Weißhaupt, Gulde, Makengo; Eggestein, Hofler; Doan, Sallai, Grifo; Holer
Key players
Fullkrug is the main goal-scorer for Dortmund. The 30-year-old has been in fine form this term, scoring nine goals and registering five assists in 20 league appearances. So, the hosts will be hoping that the German will be able to continue his promising form on Friday night.
Malen was heavily linked with a move away from the club in the winter window but he has been playing regularly in recent times and has been displaying promising performances, scoring seven goals in 19 league appearances this term.
So, the former PSV Eindhoven star will be hoping to help his side come away with all three points from this fixture by putting his name on the score-sheet.
Moukoko is a highly talented player and he has enough qualities to cause the opposition defence a lot of danger. So, the visitors will have to keep a close eye on the youngster to come away with a positive result from this encounter.
As for Freiburg, Dortmund tend to give up opportunities so Doan, Grifo and Holer will have to be clinical in front of the goal to capitalise on those chances. If they can convert those chances then they could come away with all three points from this game.
The visitors’ defence is expected to come under a lot of pressure on Friday so they need to be at the top of their game to keep the opposition attack at bay. Atubolu will also have to display a flawless performance under the bar for Freiburg to repel Dortmund’s attacks.
Prediction
Dortmund are the favourites to win this game by taking the home advantage and in addition, Freiburg’s disappointing form away from home has given BVB an extra edge in this fixture.
However, Terzic’s side haven’t been able to showcase their best and they have been extremely inconsistent so far this season. Nevertheless, Freiburg have struggled to score goals this term and have also found it difficult to keep clean-sheets.
So, the hosts should come away with all three points from this game. Considering Dortmund have won by a big margin against Freiburg in recent years, they could replicate that on Friday. But, it is going to be interesting to see how the game eventually unfolds on the night. Dortmund 3-1 Freiburg
