Borussia Dortmund vs Augsburg

Signal Iduna Park is the venue as fifth-placed Borussia Dortmund and European hopefuls Augsburg lock horns in a handsomely-looking Bundesliga clash.

Borussia Dortmund’s Bundesliga campaign descended into disarray last weekend as fellow top-four rivals RB Leipzig thumped them 4-1 to open up a five-point buffer. But while they’ll almost certainly miss out on a top-four finish for the first time since 2014/15, Die Borussen made a massive step toward reaching next season’s Champions League group stages by beating PSG 1-0 in the first leg of their semi-final tie this week. With the Bundesliga earning an additional spot in next year’s competition, manager Edin Terzic could rest some key players this weekend. That could compromise Dortmund’s hopes of improving their disappointing home form, with the hosts one of just two Bundesliga teams to have picked up more points on the road (30) than at home (27) this season. Indeed, they’ve only won once across their last four league outings at Signal Iduna Park (D1, L2).

In the meantime, Augsburg’s recent form has plunged into chaos, with three defeats across their last three league games (W1) derailing their hopes of securing their best top-flight finish since 2014/15 (fifth). Despite conceding precisely three goals in back-to-back Bundesliga matches (L2), the visitors commence this round only one point behind sixth-placed Freiburg and could realistically hope to earn a place in European competition next term if they can end a six-game winless run against Dortmund (D2, L4). However, the Bavarians have traveled poorly of late, losing their last two away league matches via an identical 3-1 scoreline, casting significant doubt on their quest to avoid defeat at Signal Iduna Park for the first time since a 1-1 draw in February 2018 (L5 since).