What Is Borussia Dortmund's Strongest Midfield Right Now?

Borussia Dortmund are a side built around their midfield. Some teams have water-tight defences, some have forward lines that always seem to score one more goal than the opponents, but for this Bundesliga side, success starts with the men in the middle of the park. 

Thomas Tuchel is clearly well-aware of this, considering the amount of time he applied to the area over the course of the summer transfer window. Not only did the new manager bring in two midfielders in Julian Weigl and Gonzalo Castro, but he also decided to clean up much of the roster by releasing Kevin Grosskreutz, Kevin Kampl and Jakub Blaszczykowski.

As much of the fanbase and Tuchel are well-aware, the midfield of Dortmund's team is where they'll either win or lose this current campaign. 

We can first begin with the holding midfield position at the very heart of Dortmund's midfield. Although this spot had Nuri Sahin's name written all over it last season, the Turkish international has since been tied back with niggling injuries and remains a doubt for the foreseeable future. 

That should have then meant German international Sven Bender came in to the side and took up a role that he'd been working towards since he joined the club from 1860 Munich in 2009. A strong, physical player who does well to remind fans of a previous generation of German stars. 

Yet, that's not what Tuchel wanted. Instead, the former Mainz manager wanted a technical player who could move the ball quickly and efficiently. Gone were the need for quick runs and hard tackles. The new Dortmund would dominate with possession. 

This came in the form of Weigl. Having just turned 20 years old, there was certainly an element of risk that came with relying on the young midfielder, yet Tuchel's faith has been repaid umpteen times by the former Bavarian youngster. 

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Weigl is Dortmund's best holding midfielder and until Sahin is back and fit, it looks as though that's not going to change. 

Alongside him will be Ilkay Gundogan. That much is sure until the German international either decides he wants to leave the club (again), indeed drops out of form or picks up another injury. The former Nurnberg youngster has looked back to his best under Tuchel—a factor that really does mean the difference between Dortmund finishing fifth one season and finishing second—but the real question is whether that can last.

Fans will always fear the return of the box-to-box midfielder's mysterious back problems and another season out of action, but until then, there's no denying that he is one of the first names on Tuchel's team sheet each week. Fans will take solace from the fact that a ready-made replacement in Castro waits on the bench for his chance to shine, but for now it's all Gundogan. 

In front of these two central midfielders will be the central, attacking midfielder, or in Tuchel's system that is more likely to be a straight forward playmaker. Under the new manager, that has so far been Shinji Kagawa. 

The Japanese international, like Gundogan, has looked like a new man this season under the new Dortmund boss. Not only that, he's also already amassed four goals and three assists in seven games for the club so far this season (via Transfermarkt).

Similarly, the wings tend to pick themselves just as easily.

On the right, Tuchel and the Dortmund fans have come to quickly rely upon the hard work of Henrikh Mkhitaryan. A remarkable eight goals and seven assists in eight games so far this season (Transfermarkt) suggest he may be in store for the season of his career. 

On the left we have a man who really needs no introduction. Marco Reus, the star of this side, may currently be injured for a short period of time but once he returns to full fitness, there will be nobody in this squad who can match what he does on the pitch. 

Adnan Januzaj, Jonas Hofmann, Castro and Bender may all have something to say about this but in truth, Dortmund's midfielder currently picks itself and as such, it hasn't looked better.