We have entered the crucial stretch of Borussia Dortmund’s season. Over the next week and a half, Dortmund will face Atalanta at home, RB Leipzig away, Atalanta away, and Bayern Munich at home. Tomorrow’s match against Atalanta is pivotal for any hopes to reach the UCL round of 16 – and the lofty revenue that comes with it. Unfortunately for Dortmund, the club’s paper thin back-line is even thinner. Nico Schlotterbeck, Emre Can, Niklas Sule, and even Filippo Mane are out injured. With Ramy Bensebaini
and Waldemar Anton as the locked-in starters, Niko Kovac will have to be creative. He can utilize a young player, like Luca Reggiani, or play someone out of position with both Salih Ozcan and Julian Ryerson being potential gap fillers. Dortmund’s defensive stability will be vital if they hope to utilize their home field advantage and begin the tie with a win.
Atalanta will be a very tough test for Dortmund. Despite earning a reputation as one of Italy’s premier attacking teams under Gian Piero Gasperini, Atalanta have a new look under Raffaele Palladino. The Torino outfit have only conceded 21 goals in Seria A, the joint fourth best defense, and only 10 goals in the UCL compared to Dortmund’s 17. Scoring has been an issue for Palladino’s side but a key 3-0 win over Juventus and 2-0 win over Lazio indicates that Atalanta may have found their shooting boots. Still, the task is simple for Dortmund – win at home.
Player to Watch: Marco Carnesecchi
It’s not often that I pick a goalkeeper for ‘Player to Watch’ but Marco Carnesecchi has quietly earned a claim to being the best goalkeeper in Serie A. The 25-year-old Italian has a whopping 79.2% save percentage in Serie A and has prevented 8 expected goals on target. He’s a large reason for Atalanta’s stalwart defense in the UCL and will be eager to keep Serhou Guirassy and company quiet tomorrow.
Predicted Lineup
Dortmund’s four center-back injuries are the sole absences from tomorrow’s match. The big question surrounding Niko Kovac’s lineup selection will be how he fills Dortmund’s defensive holes. Another question, however, is whether or not the coach will sacrifice Dortmund’s UCL campaign to keep pressure on Bayern in the Bundesliga.
Tomorrow’s match is a massive opportunity to put the tie out of reach for Atalanta and something tells me that Niko Kovac will field a full-strength lineup. I expect Julian Ryerson to drop into the back three despite his four assist performance over the weekend. Daniel Svensson and Yan Couto will play as attacking wing-backs with Felix Nmecha and a returning Marcel Sabitzer in between them. Julian Brandt has seemingly earned his place alongside Maximilian Beier and Guirassy so I expect those three to reprise their roles from Friday’s game. Dortmund’s substitute bench will be key, however, as Dortmund’s congested schedule will force Kovac to substitute earlier. Let’s hope Ozcan remembers how to play soccer!
Your Thoughts
Do you guys think Kovac should prioritize the Bundesliga, UCL, or go for both? Who will start alongside Bensebaini and Anton?
Quick writers note – I apologize to everyone for many of my articles going out later in the day than usual. Unfortunately, like Dortmund, I have also had a congested schedule over the past couple of weeks. Thanks again to everyone who takes the time to read my nonsense and talk soccer in the comments!
