Borussia Monchengladbach head into this fixture following a scoreless draw against fellow strugglers Wolfsburg at the Volkswagen Arena, where holding midfielder Jens Castrop received his marching orders in second-half stoppage time.
That outcome leaves Gladbach without a victory in their previous five outings in the Bundesliga since they beat St Pauli two goals to nil ahead of the March international break. There is nothing left to play for as far as Europe is concerned, and while they are in a safe position from the relegation zone, a few more losses could drag them closer to the danger zone.
Niko Kovac is in a much better position to continue as Borussia Dortmund manager moving forward, and there is only a small matter of confirming second spot. While they are five points clear of nearest rivals RB Leipzig, the manager would prefer to win and inch closer to closing down second spot.
Borussia Dortmund recently thrashed Freiburg at the Westfalenstadion by four goals to nil, with goals coming from Maximilian Beier, Serhou Guirassy, Ramy Bensebaini and Fabio Silva.
Dortmund had suffered consecutive defeats before that win, sitting nestled in second place, though, with a remarkable 15 months or so domestically since the appointment of former Bayern Munich manager Kovac. Hence, a win for the visitors is seen as a key moment in their season, something they will strive for on Sunday.
Eugene Polanski will have a few issues in the squad to deal with, as five players could miss out for this key encounter with rivals Dortmund. Tiago Pereira Cardoso is out with an injury, and Jens Castrop is suspended for the remaining three games left in the season.
There are further absentees in Nathan Ngomou, Tim Kleindienst and Jan Urbich, with the trio likely to miss out completely.
Polanski will continue to prefer a back three, with Phillip Sander, Nico Elvedi and Kevin Diks the preferred centre-backs for Monchengladbach, while Joe Scally and Lukas Ullrich are the wing-backs in the side.
Yannik Engelhardt and Rocco Reitz will feature in midfield, while Kevin Stoger and Franck Honorat take up the advanced roles further ahead. Haris Tabakovic will lead the line for Polanski’s side.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Nicolas; Sander, Elvedi, Diks; Scally, Engelhardt, Reitz, Ullrich; Stoger, Honorat; Tabakovic
Injuries are a big concern for Kovac ahead of making his selections for the game, with as many as eight players in with a chance of missing out. Emre Can, Niklas Sule and Ramy Bensebaini are certainly out with their respective injury issues.
Jobe Bellingham, Karim Adeyemi and Yan Couto are big doubts for the clash, while there are further absentees in Mussa Kaba and key midfielder Felix Nmecha. Hence, Kovac could make considerable alterations to his starting lineup, as Anton, Nico Schlotterbeck and Luca Reggiani will start in the back three.
Kovac will expect Bellingham to turn up fit despite the doubts over his fitness, as he could partner Marcel Sabitzer in the middle. Julian Ryerson and Maximilian Beier are the players likely to feature in the wing-back roles. Samuele Inacio and Julian Brandt could then play in advanced roles behind key striker Serhou Guirassy.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Kobel; Anton, Schlotterbeck, Reggiani; Ryerson, Sabitzer, Bellingham, Beier; Inacio, Brandt; Guirassy
Guirassy is looking to finish yet another productive season, having scored 20 goals across all competitions, including 15 strikes in the Bundesliga. He has also managed to score in his last two games against Hoffenheim and Freiburg, and Kovac will expect him to find the back of the net against Monchengladbach.
Guirassy has been key to Dortmund in many aspects, although their fans would have hoped the team pushed themselves to a better level at different points of the campaign. However, with Kovac looking to finish the campaign with a flourish, the Guinean striker will be needed to keep scoring and help the side consolidate second spot.
Monchengladbach can rely on their home advantage, but given their form compared to their visiting rivals, it is difficult to see Polanski’s side getting anything, not even a goal. With their rivals in a supreme vein of form during the season, that could well show on the pitch on Sunday.
Dortmund have bigger fish to fry, as they will want to consolidate their second place at the earliest opportunity. While Kovac’s side are widely expected to secure a comfortable win against Monchengladbach, they could inch closer to their objective.
