VFL Wolfsburg will host a flying Borussia Dortmund at the Volkswagen Arena on Tuesday night.
The visitors have scored six goals in each of their last two fixtures, away in Poland against Legia Warsaw before a similar demolition of Darmstadt three days later at Signal Iduna Park. However, it is the home side that remain unbeaten this season, having beaten Augsburg away on the opening day before successive goalless draws against Köln at home and Hoffenheim away.
Hoffenheim and Wolfsburg made the wrong type of Bundesliga history on Saturday, with a record 40 shots registered in the game, without a single goal. Last season’s results against Tuesday’s opposition may see Wolfsburg firing blanks once more, managing just two goals in the two Bundesliga fixtures between the sides last season, in comparison to Dortmund’s seven.
And with Tuchel’s side seemingly having put the Leipzig defeat well behind them, it seems their goal scoring streak against die Wölfe could continue.
Team News
Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking stated that Carlos Ascues would not be available for the Dortmund game, along with long-term injuries Sebastian Jung and Josuha Guilavogui.
Guilavogui has a neck injury whilst Jung is still recovering from the cruciate ligament rupture he suffered in February. Ascues’ injury has not been specified.
Dortmund manager confirmed André Schürrle and Sven Bender are yet to train with the side since picking up their respective injuries, and both are huge doubts for Tuesday’s game.
The summer signing from Wolfsburg has had back and knee injuries in the last few weeks, whilst Bender is still nursing the ankle injury he picked up in the semi-final of the Olympic Games.
“Sven Bender is still feeling pain in his ankle, even without moving it. He is yet to train with us,” the 43-year-old added.
The German confirmed however that no new injuries had been sustained by any of his players.
Possible Starting XI’s
VFL Wolfsburg: Casteels – Błaszczykowski, Bruma, Wollscheid, Rodríguez – Gerhardt, Gustavo – Caligiuri, Didavi, Draxler – Gómez
Borussia Dortmund: Bürki – Piszczek, Sokratis, Bartra, Schmelzer – Weigl, Pulisic – Götze, Guerreiro, Dembélé – Aubameyang
Prediciton – Wolfsburg 1-2 Dortmund
The exact result when the teams met at the Volkswagen Arena last season, I do not expect Dortmund’s flurry of goals to continue against what is a staunch, if not inspiring, Wolfsburg defence. Nevertheless, I do expect the visitors to nick the game with the pace they have at their disposal in the starting XI and off the bench. Since Dortmund have kept two clean sheets in as many games and with Wolfsburg not in the greatest goalscoring form, I cannot see the hosts managing more than a single goal here.
