Borussia Dortmund vs. Arsenal: Keys to Victory in Their Champions League Clash

Arsene Wenger's Arsenal team head to the Westfalenstadion as the top team in the Premier League and level on points in their Champions League group with Napoli and their hosts on Match Day 4, Borussia Dortmund.

However, the Schwarzgelben were victorious in their previous clash at the Emirates Stadium a fortnight ago with Robert Lewandowski firing home the winner in the 82nd minute to make it 2-1.

Olivier Giroud was Arsenal's goalscorer in that game with Dortmund's opener coming from former Shakhtar Donetsk playmaker Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

Below are the four major talking points which will decide who wins the battle for control of Group F going into the final two games of the Champions League group stage.

Arsenal Must Overcome Dortmund's Vocal Home Advantage

The Gunners will step into an intimidating atmosphere at Signal Iduna Park, home to the famous Sudtribune and its gigantic single-tiered Yellow Wall.

Dortmund's fans will certainly produce plenty of noisy atmosphere to welcome the visitors into their lair, but judging by Jurgen Klopp's comments before the game, Arsenal are likely to face a footballing cacophony on the pitch too.

As reported by David Hytner of The Guardian, Dortmund's captivating head coach has likened his team's style of play to "heavy metal" in comparison to Wenger's preference to "play football ... like an orchestra."

His side's win in North London two weeks ago wasn't quite a mosh pit in an opera house, but their approach certainly had a similar effect considering how uncomfortable Arsenal looked at home at times.

Expect a ferocious greeting from the stands as both teams take to the pitch in Germany, with the fans in the Yellow Wall likely to produce another spectacular piece of choreo—the huge, coordinated images formed by supporters holding up coloured panels—to show their support to their heroes.

Klopp's Team Must Do What They Do Best to Smother the Visitors

In an age where possession football is exalted as an ideal and pass completion rates are treated like a statistical fetish, Klopp is something of an iconoclast.

It's a role he enjoys living up to, declaring that he has little time for the tiki-taka of Barcelona and that their style of play would have driven him to instead play tennis as a teenager, per Hytner's report.

"It is not serenity football, it is fighting football—that is what I like … rainy day, heavy pitch, everybody is dirty in the face and they go home and can't play football for the next four weeks. This is Borussia."

His tactics match his words, too. Klopp sends his team out to play high-octane and direct attacking football, backed up by wave upon wave of so-called gegenpressing in order to win back the ball as close to the opponent's goal as possible by targeting a specific weak point or individual player.

Even their creative players such as Mkhitaryan have the stamina and commitment to press and deprive their opponents of time on the ball before launching new attacks at will.

Against Arsenal at the Emirates, it was an approach that the Gunners struggled to cope with. Amped up by their incredible home support, it's likely that Dortmund will be ready and willing to dial up their intensity all the way to 11.

It is the visitors who will have to adapt their game with Klopp's men more than capable of claiming all three points by simply sticking to their considerable strengths.

With Wenger missing Mathieu Flamini through injury, he will have to rely on Mikel Arteta and Co. to cope with the unrelenting stress that is set to be thrust upon them in midfield.

Wenger Needs to Come up with a Solution to His Lack of Wingers

The Gunners almost found a way to counter their opponent's enthusiasm to immediately close down opponents in their last match.

Tomas Rosicky, in particular, was unlucky not to provide Arsenal with an opening or two after he began committing players to surround him before popping a neat pass past them and into space.

Unfortunately, with Theo Walcott out of action and the likes of Mesut Ozil and Jack Wilshere dwelling on the ball rather than hitting these gaps at speed, Rosicky's invention came to nought.

Walcott is again unavailable for the match in Germany, and with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain also injured, Arsenal are short of exactly the kind of player they need to respond to Dortmund.

Instead, Wenger must improvise a solution by either finding Ozil the space he needs to take a touch and survey the field or hope that Santi Cazorla or Aaron Ramsey can have the desired effect out wide.

It May All Come Down to Which Team Has the Best Target Man

Lewandowski may be the talk of Europe following his exceptional outings in the Champions League last year, but Giroud has also been in impressive form for Arsenal after making up for his rather subdued introduction to English football in 2012.

Since Christmas, the Frenchman has grown in stature and confidence for the Gunners and is currently winning plenty of plaudits leading the line ahead of Ozil and Co.

Dortmund's Polish superstar remains the more complete individual, but Giroud could yet prove to be a match winner either under his own steam or indirectly by providing for others.

He may have scored Arsenal's consolation goal at the Emirates, but the striker's ability to hold up the ball and outmuscle defenders could be key for relieving the immense pressure that will be poured over his teammates.

Firing a ball up to Giroud may not sound like your average Arsenal play, but with Wenger's side unlikely to be given the chance to regroup and find their shape when disrupted, he may be a necessary outlet.

Alternatively, the Gunners may attempt to push up as a team to deny Dortmund the opportunity to steal the ball in the final third.

Considering the presence of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on Klopp's bench—a player with excessive pace who will punish any ambitious attempts to play a high defensive line—such a plan B could backfire disastrously.

Without true pace players on the flanks, Giroud could be a good compromise to encourage Ramsey and other potential goalscorers to run into the box, even if Arsenal's aesthetes may fret about route one football besmirching their club's good name.