For an opening weekend in the Bundesliga, it’s almost impossible to get a bigger match than Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayern Leverkusen. Two perennial Champions League teams with retooled and strengthened rosters, a propensity for dynamic fast paced attacking prowess, and two of the most exciting managers in the league: Jürgen Klopp and Roger Schmidt. This game has the potential for some serious fireworks.
Bayer Leverkusen vs. Borussia Dortmund: Preview and TV Schedule
The biggest match of the opening weekend features two teams that will expect to finish in Champions League places.
Key player - Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund)
Marco Reus is the man who makes Borussia Dortmund sing. Last Saturday, he was decidedly offkey, completing less then 80% of this passes and conceding 4 turnovers
Key matchup - Hakan Calhanoglu vs. Borussia Dortmund's holding midfield
Hakan Calhanoglu was the creative talisman for Roger Schmidt's side in their 3-2 win over FC Copenhagen on Tuesday. The 20-year-old Turkish international brings a flair and creative spark that Leverkusen has long missed. With him feeding an attacking force of prolific goalscorers including Stefan Keißling, Josip Drmic, and Son Heung-Min, it will be down to the Borussia Dortmund holding midfield (in all likelihood Milos Jojic and Sven Bender) to curtail his creativity if Dortmund want to win this match.
Borussia Dortmund injuries and suspensions
Out: Marcel Schmelzer (hamstring), Adrian Ramos (knee), Dong-Won Ji (groin), Ilkay Gundogan (fitness), Oliver Kirch (thigh), Nuri Sahin (knee) In doubt: None.
Bayer Leverkusen injuries and suspensions
Out: None. In doubt: Lars Bender (thigh)
Lars Bender’s potential absence is the story of the day in the injury and suspension department. The better of the Bender twins is a proven German international known for staunch defense whose potential absence could make or break this Leverkusen side against a powerful Dortmund attack.
On the opposite side of the the ball, Dortmund are suffering from a recent string of minor injuries that will see five key depth players miss this match. Yet lording over all the other injuries is the continued absence of Ilkay Gündogan. Undoubtedly one of Dortmund’s best players, his absence in the last calendar year with a spine injury has been a serious blow in some of Dortmund’s biggest games.
Match Date/Time: Satuday, 6:30pm local, 12:30pm ET
Venue: Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund, Germany
TV: GOLTV (USA/Canada), BT Sport 1(UK)
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