Monaco vs. Dortmund: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info for UCL Match
Borussia Dortmund will be out to overturn a 3-2 deficit in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday against AS Monaco at the Stade Louis II.
After the German side's team bus was the victim of an attack that left defender Marc Bartra in hospital, the first game between these two sides was hastily rearranged for the next day at the Westfalenstadion. And it was Monaco who were the superior outfit on the night, with their 18-year-old sensation Kylian Mbappe netting twice in a crucial away win.
It leaves Dortmund with it all to do, although Thomas Tuchel's men will be confident of turning in a much better performance a week on from the trauma of the attack.
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Here is where you can catch the action, the latest team news for the game and a closer look at what should be an enthralling fixture.
Date: Wednesday, April 19
Time: 7:45 p.m. (BST), 2:45 p.m. (ET)
TV Info: BT Sport 3 (UK), FOX Sports 2 (U.S.)
Live Stream: BT Sport website (UK), FOX Soccer 2GO (U.S.)
Team News
Monaco: Manager Leonardo Jardim will be able to welcome back Tiemoue Bakayoko from suspension for this one, although in a massive blow for Monaco, Fabinho will sit out the match after his yellow card in Dortmund. Benjamin Mendy is also set to return at left-back.
Likely XI: Danijel Subasic; Djibril Sidibe, Kamil Glik, Jemerson, Benjamin Mendy; Bernardo Silva, Joao Moutinho, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Thomas Lemar; Kylian Mbappe, Radamel Falcao
Dortmund: Tuchel is still without Bartra because of his wrist injury, meaning there are big decisions to make in defence. Christian Pulisic, after impressing off the bench in the first leg, is pushing for a start, as is Marco Reus, who returned to the team for Saturday's win over Frankfurt.
Likely XI: Roman Burki; Lukasz Piszczek, Sven Bender, Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Marcel Schmelzer; Julian Weigl, Gonzalo Castro; Ousmane Dembele, Shinji Kagawa, Marco Reus; Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Team news courtesy of Transfermarkt
Preview
Neither of these two teams need any invitation to play enterprising football. But the fact that Dortmund need two goals at least to qualify should make for an even more entertaining game.
The visitors will need to bring their best attacking play if they're going to recover the deficit, with Tuchel set to look to top scorer Aubameyang and creator-in-chief Dembele. Reus' return to the XI could prove to be most significant, though.
The German international has been dogged by injuries again this term but looked sharp when he netted against Frankfurt at the weekend. Per Bundesliga analyst Jan Aage Fjortoft, it seemed as though BVB had one eye on this game based on how he was used:
Obviously, the trouble for Dortmund when employing such a front-foot approach will be keeping out the hosts, who are so potent in their attacking play.
While Fabinho's tenacity and composure will be missed in midfield, on the flanks Silva and Lemar are so dangerous, offering guile and thrust, respectively. But it's up top where Monaco really troubled Dortmund in Germany.
Falcao's movement was too clever at times, facilitating space for the effervescent Mbappe. With the freedom afforded to him, the youngster was almost unstoppable, winning a penalty and scoring twice to give Monaco a big advantage.
As Squawka Football noted, for a player who is still in the infancy of his career, Mbappe seems to relish the big stage, too:
If Dortmund are adventurous early on, they'll play right into Monaco's hands in what promises to be a chaotic second leg.
Jardim's side, with Silva, Lemar and Mbappe, are such a threat on the counter-attack. Their ability to not only surge forward with pace, but also make smart decisions, is unrivalled in European football at the moment. Dortmund will need to be savvy in trying to stop the break whenever they can.
The Bundesliga side have the players to pull this off, and if they did net an early goal, it'd be a big test of the mentality of this young Monaco side. However, the visitors have too much firepower at their disposal to let their first-leg advantage slip.
Prediction: Monaco 2-1 Borussia Dortmund
