Borussia Dortmund vs. Augsburg: Team News, Preview, Live Stream and TV Info

Borussia Dortmund will be hoping for more luck on Wednesday night when they welcome an Augsburg side that have lived up to the billing and then some in the Bundesliga this season. 

Markus Weinzierl's high-flying side have truly outdone any expectations placed upon them ahead of this current campaign and currently sit joint third with 30 points, with goal difference being the only factor keeping them from a Champions League place at the moment. 

In contrast Jurgen Klopp's side have continued to struggle in the German top division this season yet found some much-needed luck against Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday with an 0-0 draw to kick things off in 2015. 

Whether Dortmund have indeed turned around their fortune is yet to be seen but in Augsburg it would be hard to find a more fitting test for the former German champions at this point. 

Date: Wednesday, February 4

Time: 7 p.m. GMT/2 p.m. ET

Venue: Westfalenstadion, Dortmund

TV Info: BT Sport 2 (U.K. only)/GolTV (U.S. only)

Live Stream: BT Sport 2 (U.K. only)/ GolTV (U.S. only)

Form guide

Dortmund	Hoffenheim - win	Hertha Berlin - Loss	Wolfsburg - draw	Werder Bremen - loss	Leverkusen - draw
Augsburg	Cologne - win	Bayern Munich - loss	Hannover - loss	Gladbach - win	Hoffenheim - loss

Predicted Lineup

B/R

As we can see, Klopp is mostly likely going to stick with a similar side to the one that picked up a point at the BayArena on Saturday evening. 

The front three of Marco Reus, Kevin Kampl and Ciro Immobile should prove effective if given the right space and service from a midfield that'll likely hold a more physical edge to it in Kevin Grosskreutz and Matthias Ginter. Nuri Sahin will play as the lone playmaker from the start. 

In defence we should see Sokratis Papastathopoulos come in for the injured Lukasz Piszczek and Neven Subotic takes his place at the centre of defence. Mats Hummels, Marcel Schmelzer and Roman Weidenfeller will almost certainly remain in place on Wednesday.

For Augsburg we're likely to see Weinzierl stick with the same side that overcame Hoffenheim 3-1, with an attacking lineup of Raul Bobadilla as the lone striker with Tobias Werner, Halil Altintop and Alexander Esswein in support. 

Add to that a central midfield partnership of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Daniel Baier in front of a back-line of Paul Verhaegh, Jan-Ingwer Callsen-Bracker, Ragnar Klavan and Markus Feulner, who replaces Abdul Baba on international duty with Ghana. 

Players to watch

Dortmund: Marco Reus

The returning hero of this Dortmund side wasn't fully fit against Leverkusen and thus looked off his best, yet when Augsburg come knocking on Wednesday we should expect to see Reus at the very top of his game and fighting fit. 

Augsburg: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg

The newly-acquired central midfielder has already looked outstanding in an Augsburg shirt and will waste little time formalising himself with the opponent on Wednesday. Expect this Danish international to cause Dortmund all sorts of problems and dictate any possession Augsburg enjoy in the game. 

Key Battles

Hojbjerg v Ginter

If Augsburg hope to command a presence in this game it will undoubtedly come in the centre of the park, where Dortmund are at their simplest and most vulnerable in attack. Although the likes of Ginter should offer decent defensive cover, it will be interesting to see how close the central defensive midfielder can get to Hojbjerg in the middle of the park. 

Reus v Verhaegh

Although any right minded person would suggest Reus will look bright against Augsburg on Wednesday, the German international will have his work cut out for him against the formidable foe of Verhaegh at right-back. The Augsburg defender is enjoying a terrific season and when he's not scoring penalties for his side he's defending with astute precision. A hurdle that Reus will certainly have to clear if he wants to perform on the night. 

Odds

Home win: -225  Draw: +325  Away win: +500