Borussia Dortmund have the chance to go within three points of Bayern Munich when they face VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga on matchday 21. On the flipside, Wolfsburg are in desperate need of three points as they’re within one point of the relegation zone.
Wolfsburg have one win in their last five, which also included an 8-1 thumping from Bayern Munich and a 2-1 loss to relegation rivals, Mainz 05.
If Wolves are to find a way to escape a relegation battle, they’re going to need to pick up some points against the top teams in the league. In their next five fixtures in the Bundesliga, they have RB Leipzig and VfB Stuttgart, both flying high towards the top of the table. Starting on Saturday would be perfect timing, considering the form of Mainz in 16th, who are now looking like they can beat anyone on their day.
When it comes to recent history between these two in the Bundesliga, it’s best if Wolfsburg fans just skip the next sentence or so.
Borussia Dortmund have won the last five out of six Bundesliga meetings between these, with an aggregate score of 14-1. The one game that didn’t end in a BVB win was a 1-1 draw back in 2024.
What’s more, if Wolfsburg do concede on the weekend, it will be the 14th consecutive time they have done so this season. Daniel Bauer’s side needs to find a solution and fast if they’re not to go down this season.
It’s a huge game for Borussia Dortmund. Should they win on Saturday, they’ll go within three points of Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga. With Bayern playing TSG Hoffenheim on Sunday, they may also end the weekend within a victory of matching Bayern’s points tally.
Niko Kovač’s side really had the footballing gods to thank last weekend as they escaped a scare to beat bottom of the league, FC Heidenheim 3-2 at home.
Defensively, Dortmund gave away several clear chances, and on another day, they could have lost 3-5.
This will give Wolfsburg some hope, whilst Dortmund will be eager to make sure that it doesn’t happen again, particularly as they have a massive chance to close the gap this matchday.
Following BVB’s big win last weekend, captain Nico Schlotterbeck was eager to explain that they will fight for every point and make a title race out of the situation.
Sounds exactly like what you want to hear from your captain, right?
Well, not if you’re on the BVB board, it’s not. Spectacularly, such comments have not gone down well with the likes of head coach Niko Kovac, Sporting director Sebastian Kehl and director of sport Lars Ricken, as it continues to put pressure on them.
In reaction to Schlotterbeck’s comments, Kovac said: “I don’t know if Schlotti said that verbatim. My focus is on the rearview mirror. I want to see the teams behind us shrink in size first. We need to get points to keep the teams behind us at bay.”
While Kehl added: “Of course, we don’t want to relinquish this second place at the end of the year, that’s obvious. What you have, you want to keep. We have to be realistic about the top spot; Bayern are simply doing a good job. They usually win the German championship, the DFB Cup, and the Champions League.”
I can’t get my head around it personally, but there you have it, folks.
The Wolves continue to miss several defence players such as Moritz Jenz, Rogerio, and Joakim Maehle. Expect to see a similar back four that lost 1-0 to FC Köln last weekend.
For Dortmund, it’s as you were in terms of personal. The only doubt is Emre Can due to illness. Other than that, it’s a full strength going into this Bundesliga match-up.
