Borussia Dortmund host neighbouring Bochum at the Westfalenstadion on Saturday afternoon in what is their first home game of the season. The Schwarzgelben come into the Ruhrderby following a narrow 1-0 win against FC Köln last weekend, and so they’ll be hoping for an improvement in performance this time round.
Coming into this game, head coach Edin Terzić faces several options. While the starting XI almost picks itself, he did state that Julian Ryerson is a question mark coming into this game. Should the Norwegian be sidelined, expect Marius Wolf to start at right-back alongside Niklas Süle, Mats Hummels and Ramy Bensebaini.
BILD also suggested that Marco Reus, who relinquished his captaincy heading into the current campaign, may be dropped following his performance against Köln. That would mean a central role for Julian Brandt, who excelled for Dortmund last season, with Karim Adeyemi coming in on the left-flank after coming off the bench last week.
Another option would be Felix Nmecha, who is reportedly fit enough to start- that would though mean a switch to a 4-3-3 for Terzić. Regardless, expect both Emre Can and Marcel Sabitzer to start.
In attack, Sébastien Haller – despite a poor showing against Köln – will also retain his place but Youssoufa Moukoko will again be an option for Borussia Dortmund from the bench, offering a different profile to the Ivorian.
There has been some good news for Dortmund this week. Gio Reyna has returned to training for the first time since picking up a calf injury while on international duty with the USA in June. While he could feature on the bench, it’s unlikely that BVB will rush a return for Reyna.
Predicted Borussia Dortmund XI vs Bochum
Gregor Kobel – Julian Ryerson, Niklas Süle, Mats Hummels, Ramy Bensebaini – Emre Can, Marcel Sabitzer – Donyell Malen, Julian Brandt, Karim Adeyemi – Sébastien Haller.
GGFN | Daniel Pinder
