Borussia Dortmund have confirmed that injured central defenders Nico Schlotterbeck and Emré Can were both able to partake in the squad’s final training session ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League fixture against Atalanta Bergamo. The Bundesliga outfit nevertheless also noted that it remained unclear as to whether both players would be fit enough to participate tomorrow.
It was initially expected that Schlotterbeck would be rested for Wednesday’s UCL leg in preparation for this weekend’s league fixture against Bayern Munich. The calculus has now shifted due to the fact that the central defensive corps requires urgent assistance. After impressing in his Champions League deployment last week, Luca Reggiani performed very poorly in last weekend’s Bundesliga draw with RB Leipzig.
Schlotterbeck has missed the last two league matches due to suspension and injury, respectively. Can – struggling with nagging adductor problems all season – hasn’t featured for BVB since late last month. Dortmund enter Wednesday’s UCL tie up 2-0 on aggregate following last week’s victory over the Serie A club.
After dropping points against Leipzig last weekend, Dortmund head into the showdown against Bayern eight points off first place. A loss or draw in the Bundesliga this weekend will all but effectively extinguish BVB’s faint and flickering title hopes. It’s possible that head coach Niko Kovac won’t even be prioritizing the league fixture at all.
