After an absolute nailbiter of a comeback in the weekend, Niko Kovac and his team will hope to make it a bit less exciting as they kick off this year’s Champions League campaign against the visitors from Villareal. Luckily for The Black and Yellows, they are seemingly visited by a very wounded animal. Villareal haven’t managed to win a single game in their first four La Liga matches, registering two draws and two defeats so far. The Yellow Submarine is no doubt a staple in European football, but
they are still a league or two below the Dortmunders. With BVB playing at home, everything else but a win would be a disaster.
Player to Watch: Georges Mikautadze
As far as good European strikers go, Georges Mikautadze has been going very much under the radar the past couple of seasons. Villareal’s number 9 is something as rare as a French born Georgian. The 25-year old striker has roots in Lyon but transferred to Villareal for 30 million euros last season. His debut season in La Liga saw him score 13 goals and notch 6 assists across 32 games. A very strong return and a big reason Villareal ended up in 3rd place last year. His strength is obviously in front of goal, but he’s able to get past a man as well—much like Donyell Malen who Dortmund fans may (or may not) remember. Anton and co. will no doubt be kept on their toes against this man.
Predicted Starting XI
I actually think predicting the starting XI for this match is very difficult. The game is only three days after BVB’s game against Hoffenheim, so it would no doubt make sense for Kovac to rest some of the players who has been playing a lot—namely Jobe and Nmecha. Ryerson has also been playing a lot, but he does not have an obvious substitute like some of the others. I predict that Kovac will shuffle the cards quite a bit while still maintaining a high level of quality on the pitch.
I think Sabitzer is still certainly good enough to start, and Chukwuemeka is not by any means a bad player. In my opinion, this lineup should still have enough quality to get the job done.
Your Thoughs?
I’m not gonna go for a score prediction. All I’m gonna say is, that I expect the team to win tomrrow. But what about you? What are your expectations. Let me know in the comments below!
