Borussia Dortmund and Rasenballsport Leipzig are set to go head-to-head for the third time this season. Having already faced off twice in the Bundesliga, they will meet in the DFB-Pokal on Wednesday evening (kick-off 20:45 CET). The Black & Yellows will be aiming to beat the holders and reach the semi-finals.
“The DFB-Pokal offers the shortest route to a title,” said Edin Terzic. However, the BVB coach also added: “It’s not been easy for us this year, because the cup games have been exclusively away so far. But if we want to win the DFB-Pokal, we must overcome difficult challenges and the next one awaits us in Leipzig tomorrow.” The aim will be to follow up the successful cup ties at TSV 1860 Munich (3-0), Hannover 96 (2-0) and VfL Bochum (2-1) with a fourth away triumph.
Karim Adeyemi, who will miss out through suspension following his red card against Hannover, will be joined on the sidelines by Nico Schlotterbeck. The centre-back sustained a muscle fibre tear with tendon involvement in the match in Munich on Saturday. Mats Hummels and Emre Can could replace the defender in Leipzig, according to Terzic. The coach is also mulling over the use of youth players such as Soumaila Coulibaly as well as a possible change of system.
The duo of Gio Reyna and Thomas Meunier, who missed out on the game in Munich, could return. “Thomas was already able to up his workload again yesterday, the back pain is decreasing. In his case, we’ll need to make a decision after the final training session,” explained Terzic. “It’s a similar story for Gio, who did some light running again on Sunday, stepped up his training yesterday and is set to train with the team again for the first time today.” In addition, there is a question mark hanging over the involvement of Sebastian Haller. The forward took a knock on Saturday and slightly twisted his knee. “He wasn’t able to train yesterday, but is already feeling better again today.”
“No reason to be pessimistic”
The 4-2 loss in Munich was the first time the Black & Yellows have suffered a defeat in the Bundesliga this year. “We were very disappointed but immediately looked forward,” explained Terzic, who met up with his team on Sunday to analyse the match. “There’s no reason to approach the tasks ahead with negativity or pessimism. We’re still one of the most in-form teams in the Bundesliga and in Europe. Tomorrow, we’re fighting for a place in the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal.”
Leipzig have lost their last three competitive matches: first away to Manchester City in the Champions League (7-0), then away to VfL Bochum (1-0) and at home to Mainz (3-0) in the Bundesliga. Nonetheless, Terzic is expecting to go up against a strong opponent. “As the title holders, they will be intent on reaching the semi-finals. We know how difficult it was not only in Leipzig, but at home a few weeks ago too.” BVB suffered a 3-0 loss in Saxony in the reverse fixture, with the home game in the second half of the season ending in a narrow 2-1 victory for Borussia at the beginning of March. The coach described Leipzig’s approach as “extremely courageous and extremely intense. They are always dangerous when it comes to aggressively winning the ball back in the centre and counter-attacking quickly. They always get in behind. We urgently need to get that under control.”
If they do, there is a chance of bringing the DFB-Pokal back to Dortmund again after the 2021 triumph. “We were able to lift the cup two years ago. The feeling was indescribable, but it was not complete because we were not able to celebrate with our fans. We want to make up for that this year,” explained Terzic, adding: “We’ve observed how great a desire there is to reach the next round of the cup. We’ll prepare for it optimally.”
Christina Reinke
BVB TV by 1&1: The press conference prior to the cup game in Leipzig