Borussia Dortmund vs. Augsburg preview: One eye on crucial Champions League clash
Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund are sitting in fifth position and five points adrift of fourth-placed RB Leipzig after they lost 4-1 to die Roten Bullen last weekend. Edin Terzic’s side picked themselves up from that disappointment to edge out PSG in Wednesday’s semi-final first leg. Niclas Füllkrug scored the only goal of the game to give Dortmund the upper hand ahead of the return leg in Paris.
The midweek win also secured Germany an extra Champions League spot, ensuring fifth place will be enough for Dortmund to qualify for UEFA’s premier club competition. Although they are guaranteed to achieve a top-five finish, die Schwarzgelben will still be keen to pick up a win ahead of Tuesday’s crucial Champions League fixture.
The hosts have won each of their last five home games against Augsburg, including a dramatic 4-3 victory in last season’s clash at Signal Iduna Park.
Team News
Dortmund will be unable to call upon Ramy Bensebaini, Julien Duranville and Sebastien Haller.
Augsburg
Augsburg have experienced an underwhelming run of form, having won just one of their previous five matches. In fact, Jess Thorup’s side have lost three of their previous four games, including both of their last two against Eintracht Frankfurt and Werder Bremen. The Fuggerstädter fell to a 3-1 defeat to die Adler, before they slumped to a 3-0 loss in last weekend’s home game against Bremen.
Despite losing back-to-back matches, Augsburg still have the opportunity to secure a top-seven finish and European qualification. As it stands, the Fuggerstädter are sitting in eighth position with just one point separating them from Freiburg in seventh spot. While the gap by be close, Augsburg’s European hopes may be tempered by the fact they will finish the season with three tricky fixtures. After playing Dortmund on Saturday, Augsburg will play host to third-placed Stuttgart before wrapping up the campaign with an away game against champions
Team News
Augsburg are without Iago, Robert Gumny, Reece Oxford, Raphael Framberger, Fredrik Jensen and Elvis Rexhbecaj. Meanwhile, Kristijan Jakic will serve a one-match suspension for an accumulation of yellow cards.