Borussia Dortmund will host Sporting Lisbon in the second leg of their round of 16 matchup. After a commanding 3-0 victory in the first leg, where goals from Guirassy, Gross, and Adeyemi secured a significant advantage for Dortmund (Nolan, 2025), expectations are high for both teams. However, Dortmund's current form raises concerns; they sit at 11th place in the Bundesliga and recently suffered a disappointing 2-0 defeat to VfL Bochum. This inconsistent performance could affect their confidence heading into this crucial fixture.
Dortmund produced an efficient display in Lisbon to take full control of this tie, with summer arrival Serhou Guirassy starring as Niko Kovac picked up his first win in charge of BVB.
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Issues have continued to arise under the new manager domestically, however, and they were beaten again at the weekend. This time, Bochum took advantage of their vulnerabilities in a dire 2-0 defeat.
Joao Pereira, was sacked weeks into the job.
Carney Chukwuemeka, meanwhile, is expected to return to the squad after returning to training on Sunday following a knee problem.
BVB coach Niko Kovac is expected to make changes to his starting line-up after the poor performance against Bochum, with Julian Ryerson and Salih Özcan likely to come into the side at the expense of Niklas Süle and Marcel Sabitzer, who both struggled on Saturday.
Borussia Dortmund possible starting lineup: Kobel; Ryerson, Can, Schlotterbeck, Svensson; Ozcan, Gross; Adeyemi, Brandt, Bynoe-Gittens; Guirassy
Sporting Lisbon possible starting lineup: Silva; Fresneda, Diomande, Quaresma, Reis; Debast, Hjulmand; Trincao, Simoes, Biel; Gyokeres
Sporting's ambition to overturn a deficit—this match promises excitement and intensity.
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