After a week full of drama and tensions between the coach and the club CEO, Borussia Dortmund will travel to Augsburg, looking to put all their off-field problems behind. The Black and Yellows currently stand in third place, just two points above fourth-placed Hoffenheim. So a win is must for Thomas Tuchel’s men, who will look to finish third in order to guarantee direct qualification for the Champions League next season. Whereas, Hoffenheim will be desperately looking for a choke up from Tuchel’s men. Here is the predicted Dortmund lineup to face Augsburg for their important clash this weekend.
Goalkeeper: Roman Burki will start for the Black and Yellows against Augsburg. Dortmund do tend to be sloppy against Raul Bobadilla, Burki will look to make sure that’s not the case.
Right Back: Lukasz Piszczek is set to start as the right back. The Polish defender has played down a host of positions, with his customary right back being the most effective. He is also nominated for the team of the season, as the best RB this season.
Center Back(R): Sokratis Papastathopoulos is an integral part of the Dortmund defence. His presence will be a key for the visitors as they look to keep a clean sheet.
Center Back(L): Marc Bartra trained with the team for the first time after the terrorist attack a few weeks ago, but he needs some more time to get back on the field. Matthias Ginter is expected to start alongside Sokratis as the left-sided centre-back.
Left Back: Marcel Schmelzer is in brilliant form right now, and he has been showing that for the past couple of matches. No wonder he will be an important player for Thomas Tuchel on the left flank.
Central Defensive Midfielder: Julian Weigl will be the lone defensive midfielder for Dortmund. The 21-year old has lately struggled as the lone midfielder but that’s according to his own standards. In hindsight, he is still an amazing asset for the Black and Yellows in the midfield department.
Right Wing: Christian Pulisic might start against Augsburg, as Ousmane Dembele wasn’t as effective against Hoffenheim last week. The American has responded well every time he was called up by his coach Thomas Tuchel, and will once again look to use his skills to dismantle the opposition defence.
Central Midfield: Gonzalo Castro will be doubtful for the Augsburg clash, meaning Shinji Kagawa will start in place of the former Leverkusen midfielder, but in a much-advanced position. He’ll be the main man for the visitors in the offensive department.
Central Midfield: Raphael Guerreiro is all set to make a comeback into the starting lineup. The Portuguese wizard has been the real bargain for Dortmund last summer. His presence might make the telling difference against Augsburg.
Left Wing: Marco Reus is in sizzling form, scoring in almost all of his last five games for Dortmund, which proves his worth to the team. Luck also seems to be favouring the German International right now, which can only be a good sign for Reus. He is also poised to sign a new contract extension, which will keep him at the club till 2021.
Striker: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been a subject of a lot of discussion for the past few weeks. Especially his penalty miss against Hoffenheim last week drew a lot of criticism. Rumours suggest that the Gabonese International might finally make a move to PSG this upcoming summer. However, he will be focused on performing well for his team against Augsburg this weekend.
