Borussia Dortmund Catch Glimpse of Their Future in Impressive Stuttgart Win

Borussia Dortmund could have taken it easy in Saturday's Bundesliga meeting with VfB Stuttgart. Coming off a thoroughly deserved 3-0 win over Hertha BSC in the DFB-Pokal in midweek, there was very little to play for in Swabia.

Sure, the Black and Yellows knew they'd delay Bayern Munich's title celebrations for at least one week with a win, but that's hardly enough to motivate a team. With Stuttgart fighting against relegation, one would have expected the game to be quite tricky for Dortmund, even though the hosts were winless in five before Saturday.

What transpired in the Mercedes Benz Arena, however, was another reminder that Dortmund defy regular conventions. Despite again playing a heavily rotated side, the Black and Yellows were impressive both in attack and defence, never once leaving any doubt about the eventual winner, as Michael Caley's expected-goals chart shows:

"

xG map for Stuttgart - BVB.

That Dortmund danger zone shot cluster is so beautiful. I could cry. pic.twitter.com/BPIhdeOJDI

— Michael Caley (@MC_of_A) April 23, 2016"

It was their third 3-0 victory on the spin since the stoppage-time heartbreak of Anfield, and perhaps the most notable of the three, seeing as it came with a number of key players missing or rested on the bench, chief among them striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, midfielder Ilkay Gundogan and centre-back Mats Hummels. 

In more ways than one, the Black and Yellows might have caught a glimpse of their future at Stuttgart.

Gundogan is as good as gone, if reports are to be believed, with Manchester City his next destination, per the Sun (h/t the Daily Star).

In the week leading up to the Stuttgart match, rumours have intensified that Hummels could also leave the club, after the team captain told German broadcaster Sky (h/t Deutsche Welle) after the cup win over Hertha that "I've set a date [for my decision], but I'm keeping it to myself. It's costing me half an hour before bed every night."

Boris Streubel/Getty Images

Matthias Ginter got a rare start at centre-back, only his third of the season across all competitions, per Transfermarkt.co.uk, in Hummels' place and looked more than solid. ESPN FC's Stefan Buczko rated his performance at eight out of 10, noting that it was "probably his best game at centre-back for Dortmund. His tackling was sharp and his passes out of the back were clean."

It was a timely reminder that Ginter joined the club as one of the highest-rated young centre-backs in Europe. Having only turned 22 in January, it's not too late for him to settle down at his natural position after helping out at right-back and in defensive midfield this season.

He's the only central defender Dortmund have who could theoretically replace Hummels internally, thanks to solid technique and passing qualities in the build-up phase.

It has to be noted, of course, that Stuttgart didn't pose a big threat to Dortmund, with a rather passive game plan and no true striker on the pitch, but it was an impressive performance from Ginter nonetheless.

In midfield, meanwhile, Henrikh Mkhitaryan ran the show in Gundogan's absence. While not necessarily replacing him like-for-like, the Armenian did take on many of the Germany international's responsibilities, leading all midfielders in touches with 82, per WhoScored.com.

The 27-year-old had a hand in every goal, as the video below shows:

As long as Dortmund have Mkhitaryan, who's been playing in the form of his life for months, they'll be alright, it seems.

Of course, one can't talk about the Black and Yellows catching a glimpse of their future without mentioning Christian Pulisic. The 17-year-old scored his second professional goal, but he didn't play his best match, as he admitted after the game:

Deutsche Welle's Stefan Bienkowski wrote on Pulisic: "Against the backdrop of constant fear mongering over further Dortmund departures, both sporting director Michael Zorc and [head coach Thomas] Tuchel have reiterated how strong the team will be in seasons to come. Pulisic has quickly become an embodiment of that belief."

Dortmund have earned the luxury of giving starts to 17-year-olds—it was Pulisic's third-straight start in the league—with their impressive season, and Tuchel will surely use the last three games before the cup final against Bayern Munich on May 21 for further experiments.

As Buczko put it, "there might be little tension left in the league for Dortmund, but they still make each 90 minutes worthwhile for their fans."

Lars Pollmann is a Featured Columnist writing on Borussia Dortmund. He also writes for YellowWallPod.com. You can follow him on Twitter.