Borussia Dortmund are all set to host Manchester City at the Signal Iduna Park in what will be a crucial Group G game. Pep Guardiola’s in-form Man City have already qualified for the knockout stages, and a victory against Borussia Dortmund should confirm the top spot. Borussia Dortmund, meanwhile, are three points behind their opponents and will hope for a positive result to secure their place in the round of 16.
The Premier League Champions bounced back from their defeat at Anfield by winning 3-1 against Brighton & Hove Albion over the weekend. They remain two points behind Arsenal in second place as the race for the title intensifies. Dortmund are also coming off a victory after thrashing VfB Stuttgart by five goals without reply.
When & Where?
Stadium: Signal Iduna Park.
Date: Tuesday 25 October 2022.
Kickoff: 20:00 BST
Team News
Full backs Thomas Meunier and Mateu Morey are sidelined while summer-singing Nico Schlotterback was substituted in the halftime last game due to an injury. It remains to be seen whether the center half will be available to face Manchester City. Marco Reus, who returned to the pitch against Union Berlin, will hope to make the starting 11 against Manchester City alongside teenager Youssoufa Moukoko and the firing Jude Bellingham. Midfielder Salih Ozcan is suspended after picking up three yellow cards.
For Manchester City, Kyle Walker remains out after enduring surgery last month. However, John Stones is back in contention and made the bench against Brighton. Moreover, he could start against Dortmund in place of former black and yellow player, Manuel Akanji. Kalvin Phillips has also returned to the training pitch, but he has not traveled to Germany while Sergio Gomez is suspended as a result of a red card against Copenhagen.
Match Analysis
Borussia Dortmund, much like their recent seasons, have had an inconsistent start to the campaign. A demoralizing defeat at the hands of league leaders Union Berlin was followed by a win against Stuttgart, but things are far from ideal at Dortmund. However, the return of Marco Reus will propel them and Edin Terzic will hope for a performance to secure their qualification.
Dortmund defended extremely well last time out against Manchester City, with Terzic opting for a 4-5-1 formation to double up in the wide areas. The threat of Erling Haaland was also navigated brilliantly by Mats Hummels until the former star in these parts scored a stunning goal to snatch the victory away from Dortmund. Terzic could start with a similar strategy to neutralize Foden and Grealish and let Bellingham and Moukoko hit Man City on the break.
Pep Guardiola will hope for better performance, especially with the crowd behind Dortmund. A draw would secure the top place, but we all know Manchester City never settles for a draw. Kevin De Bruyne was out of sorts against Brighton despite scoring a wonder goal and will look to rise to the occasion like he always does.
Foden, meanwhile, was rested over the weekend and should take Riyad Mahrez’s place in the 11 while Ilkay Gundogan could also replace Bernardo Silva. It will be interesting to see whether Guardiola plays his fullbacks inverted to drag Dortmund’s wingers inwards and isolate the wingers. Dortmund showed mettle while defending and were a threat on the break last time out and Man City will look to keep possession better and use Haaland’s ability up top.
Predicted XI
Borussia Dortmund predicted lineup vs Manchester City: Kobel; Wolf, Sule, Hummels, Guerreiro; Can, Bellingham; Adeyemi, Brandt, Malen; Moukoko.
Manchester City predicted lineup vs Borussia Dortmund: Ederson; Stones, Dias, Ake, Cancelo; Rodri, Gundogan, De Bruyne; Silva, Foden, Haaland.
