Borussia Dortmund
In their penultimate fixture before the season’s first international break rolls around, Borussia Dortmund await the visit of SC Paderborn on Matchday 3 of the Bundesliga. The action kicks off at 15:30 CET on Saturday afternoon from the Westfalenstadion.
Niko Kovač’s men will be hoping to maintain their perfect start to the German topflight as they seek their third win. Something they can feel slightly fortunate to still boast after coming from two goals down to defeat TSG Hoffenheim 3-2 last weekend.
BVB’s hiccups – albeit marginal – continued against Villarreal in the Champions League on Tuesday until an improved second-half display helped them to another win. The in-form Serhou Guirassy netted a brace which took his tally up to four goals in all competitions.
Perhaps even more crucially for Dortmund, they welcome the return of Nico Schlotterbeck and Ramy Bensebaini. Having been sidelined with injuries, Kovač revealed that the duo are “fit, healthy, and they are ready” to make their return to the starting lineup if needed.
Team news:
The aforementioned, Schlotterbeck (ankle) and Bensebaini (rib) return to the fold for BVB. However, Emre Can and Giannis Konstantelias (both ACL tears) won’t feature, while Filippo Mane and Justin Lerma nurse muscle injuries. Samuele Inacio is still serving a suspension.
Click here to see our predicted lineup for Borussia Dortmund in this contest.
SC Paderborn 07
Paderborn visit their Westphalian neighbours for the first time since February 2021, when the clubs faced off in the DFB-Pokal. Then under the tutelage of Steffen Baumgart, an extra-time winner from Erling Haaland eventually settled the result that ended 3-2 in the hosts’ favour.
This time, a totally new-look Paderborn ought to come into this game with a pep in their step. While they are yet to taste victory since gaining promotion to the Bundesliga, the performances of Ralf Kettemann’s side have been spirited to say the least.
An opening day scoreless stalemate away to Mainz followed by a narrow 1-0 loss on home soil to SC Freiburg may not look like much. However, the reality is Paderborn have been reasonably solid defensively – not the easiest of tasks for a side moving up a division.
Perhaps most glaringly obvious is their lack of offensive output. A shortage of clinical end product and a poor shot conversion rate is something that needs addressing. That won’t be easy this Saturday against a BVB outfit who kept 15 clean sheets last campaign.
Team news:
Much to Kettemann’s relief, Paderborn’s injury list remains quite small. Timur Gayret is out long-term with an ACL tear. Veteran forward Sven Michel (groin), Lasse Eickel (back) and defender Nyamekye Awortwie-Grant (outer ligament problems) will also be unavailable.
Click here to see our predicted lineup for SC Paderborn in this contest.
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