FC Augsburg vs. Borussia Dortmund: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info
FC Augsburg host Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16 of the 2015/16 DFB-Pokal on Wednesday.
The hosts are one of the form teams of German football, having taken 10 points from their last four matches in the Bundesliga, while also qualifying for the round of 32 in the UEFA Europa League with a last-minute winner against Partizan earlier in December. At the weekend, they beat Schalke thanks to another late winner, this time from Brazilian forward Caiuby.
The Swabians look like a different team than the one Dortmund blew out of Signal Iduna Park with a 5-1 victory in the Bundesliga in late October: Augsburg were bottom of the league back then and had only won three out of their 13 matches across all competitions to that point.
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Just three days after the heavy defeat at the hands of the Black and Yellows, Augsburg advanced in the DFB-Pokal thanks to a surprisingly comfortable 3-0 win at 2. Bundesliga side Freiburg. In the first round, where the Bundesliga teams traditionally travel to lower-league competition, the Swabians beat Elversberg, a fourth-division side, 3-1 after extra time.
Wednesday's visitors are coming off an easy 4-1 win over Frankfurt on Sunday. Dortmund have lost three of their last six matches, however, and will be tested in the cup for the first time this season.
The Black and Yellows made rather light work of beating 3. Bundesliga side Chemnitz 2-0 in the first round and battered Paderborn of the 2. Bundesliga 7-1 in October.
The last time Dortmund fell to a team other than Bayern Munich before a DFB-Pokal final came in October 2010. The Black and Yellows have become cup specialists, having reached the final three times since 2011. Augsburg's biggest success in the DFB-Pokal came in 2009/10, when they were still a 2. Bundesliga side and reached the semi-finals.
Date: Wednesday, December 16
Time: 7.30 p.m. GMT/2.30 p.m. ET/8.30 p.m. local time
Venue: WWK-Arena, Augsburg
TV Info: BT Sport Europe (UK only)/ESPN3 (U.S. only)
Live Stream: BT Sport live streaming (UK only)/WATCH ESPN (U.S. only)
Form Guide
| Augsburg | Dortmund |
| Bilbao: Loss (2-3) | Krasnodar: Loss (1-0) |
| Wolfsburg: Draw (0-0) | Stuttgart: Win (4-1) |
| Cologne: Win (1-0) | Wolfsburg: Win (2-1) |
| Partizan: Win (3-1) | PAOK: Loss (1-0) |
| Schalke: Win (2-1) | Frankfurt: Win (4-1) |
Predicted Lineups
Augsburg
Predicted starting XI: Hitz; Verhaegh, Hong, Klavan, Max; Kohr, Baier; Bobadilla, Trochowski, Ji; Matavz.
Head coach Markus Weinzierl said in his press conference that he wasn't sure yet whether he'll rotate his squad, per the club's Twitter account (link in German). The expectation is, however, that there will be some changes to the side which beat Schalke.
Most importantly, though, captain Paul Verhaegh returns from suspension. The 32-year-old right-back is one of the most vital players in Weinzierl's system and was sorely missed in the earlier meeting with Dortmund, when he was injured.
Other than that, changes seem most likely in the attacking ranks. Former Germany international Piotr Trochowski is likely to start instead of South Korea international Koo Ja-cheol, while Koo's compatriot Ji Dong-won, who had a six-month stint with Dortmund, could replace Caiuby on the wing.
Finally, Raul Bobadilla could play as the lone striker again, which would mean that Alexander Esswein keeps his spot in the XI despite a disappointing performance on the weekend.
Dortmund
Predicted starting XI: Burki; Piszczek, Sokratis, Hummels, Schmelzer; Gundogan, Weigl, Kagawa; Mkhitaryan, Aubameyang, Castro
Marco Reus looks set to miss the game with an adductor injury, as Bleacher Report's Rory Marsden relayed. He was capably replaced by Gonzalo Castro in the win over Frankfurt, as the 28-year-old moved to the wing from his position in Dortmund's midfield trio. Shinji Kagawa came on for Reus on Sunday and will be in the starting XI against Augsburg.
Overall, not much rotation is expected. Sokratis Papastathopoulos could get a game in place of Sven Bender, since the latter started the last five games and can be considered a regular at this point. One position where a change wouldn't be surprising is right-back, where Lukasz Piszczek and Matthias Ginter seem to be neck and neck.
Players to Watch
Despite their undeniable uptick in performance in recent weeks, Augsburg are still struggling to consistently threat their opponents, as Fox Soccer's Ross Dunbar noted:
"Goals have been in short supply for the Bavarians. Raul Bobadilla has played like a superstar in Europe with six goals in five matches, but has managed just three strikes in the Bundesliga.
Last season's top scorer Tobias Werner is out long-term, while Andre Hahn left to join Borussia Monchengladbach the season before last.
Replacing players of genuine quality is a struggle for Augsburg, and recent moves in the transfer market to bolster attacking options have had mixed success.
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Bobadilla looks like Augsburg's best bet to score from open play against Dortmund, who have struggled to keep clean sheets, as we highlighted this week. Captain Mats Hummels looks on his way to return to form, so his performance is certain to be in focus for the visitors.
Naturally, all eyes will be on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang when Dortmund are on the attack. The Gabon international's incredible season has been well documented, and Augsburg are warned: He scored two of his three hat-tricks for the Black and Yellows against the Swabians, with the second one coming in the meeting in October.
Key Battle
Augsburg's Pressing vs. Dortmund's Possession Game
The hosts are brimming with confidence after their successful run of games, especially thanks to two late, emotional wins in important games. Since the DFB-Pokal is somewhat of a bonus for a side like Augsburg, one can expect them to play on the front foot.
Augsburg are a side that can disrupt Dortmund's possession-oriented playing style with aggressiveness, and they have the players to exploit the visitors' weaknesses after they lose the ball.
Dortmund generally seem to struggle when their opponents attack them higher up the pitch, whereas they have shown they can crack just about anyone when they get time and space to outplay concentrated defensive blocks.
Augsburg would be well advised to take a page out of Hamburg's game plan against Dortmund. In Dortmund's 3-1 loss on the road, Hamburg were aggressive, forced Dortmund into mistakes in the buildup and were able to make them count—they scored two first-half goals from as many opportunities.
Odds (via Oddschecker)
Augsburg: 6-1
Draw: 50-13
Dortmund: 18-35
Lars Pollmann is a featured columnist writing on Borussia Dortmund. He also writes for Yellowwallpod.com. You can follow him on Twitter.
