RB Leipzig hosts Borussia Dortmund in the DFB Pokal quarterfinal on Wednesday evening and they will be hoping to book their place in the next round of the competition with a victory at home.
The home side are in abysmal form right now and they are coming into this game on the back of four defeats from their last five matches across all competitions.
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund were beaten 4-2 by Bayern Munich in their last outing and they will be looking to bounce back strongly with a statement performance here.
The last time these two sides met earlier in March, Borussia Dortmund picked up a 2-1 victory at home. However, they were beaten by RB Leipzig back in September.
Back on the road 🏆⏭ pic.twitter.com/HrxgznXxVE
— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) April 4, 2023
Team News and Tactics
RB Leipzig
Marco Rose is likely to be without Christopher Nkunku who is still recovering from his hamstring injury. Peter Gulacsi, Xaver Schlager and Yussuf Poulsen are sidelined with long-term injuries as well.
Other than that, the home side should have a fully fit squad to choose from.
Janis Blaswich is likely to start in goal for RB Leipzig who will line up in a 4-2-2-2 formation.
In the back four, Mohamed Simakan and David Raum are likely to be deployed as the full-backs and they will look to add width to the side during counterattacks. Willi Orban will partner with Josco Gvardiol at the heart of the defence.
In the midfield pivot, Konrad Laimer will start alongside Amadou Haidara. The two players will look to break up the opposition’s play and set up transitions for their side.
Dominic Szoboszlai and Dani Olmo will start as the attacking midfielders and they will look to drift outside to add some width from time to time and also move in centrally to link up with the midfield.
Andre Silva is set to lead the line alongside Timo Werner.
Probable Lineup (4-2-2-2): Blaswich; Simakan, Orban, Gvardiol, Raum; Laimer, Haidara; Szoboszlai, Olmo; Silva, Werner
Borussia Dortmund
Edin Terzic will be without the services of Thomas Meunier, Mateu Morey, and Abdoulaye Kamara because of injuries. Nico Schlotterbeck picked up an injury against Bayern Munich and he is set to be sidelined as well.
Dortmund are likely to start in a 4-3-3 formation with Gregor Kobel in goal.
Marius Wolf and Raphael Guerreiro will start as the full-backs and the two players will look to add creativity and width to the side along with their defensive responsibilities.
Niklas Sule will partner with Mats Hummels at the centre of the defence.
In the midfield, Emre Can will act as the anchor and look to break up the opposition’s play. The likes of Jude Bellingham and Salih Ozcan will look to add creativity and control in the middle of the park.
Youssoufa Moukoko is set to lead the line for the visitors with Julian Brandt and Marco Reus on either side of him.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Kobel; Wolf, Sule, Hummels, Guerreiro; Ozcan, Can, Bellingham; Brandt, Moukoko, Reus
Key Stats
- Dortmund have won eight out of the last 15 matches played against RB Leipzig.
- RB Leipzig have won three of their last four matches against Borussia Dortmund in all competitions.
- The last six matches between the two teams in all competitions have produced 24 goals.
- RB Leipzig have let in 11 goals in their past three games, and they have a single clean sheet at home since October.
Player to watch out for
Jude Bellingham
Dortmund feels 😁 pic.twitter.com/H0ZNdg8d1X
— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) March 30, 2023
RB Leipzig have been quite vulnerable at the back recently and they will look to take a cautious approach here.
Borussia Dortmund will have to dominate the midfield contest and create ample opportunities to win the game. Jude Bellingham will be crucial to the away side’s hopes of breaking down the Leipzig defence and he is our man to watch out for.
Prediction
RB Leipzig 1-2 Borussia dortmund
The home side are in quite poor form right now and they have conceded 11 goals in their last three outings across all competitions without a reply.
On the other hand, Borussia Dortmund are unbeaten in four of their last six matches across all competitions.
Dortmund managed to pick up a win over Leipzig in March as well and they have the quality to come out on top once again. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 win for the away side.
