League leaders Borussia Dortmund will look to keep their perfect start intact when they host Werder Bremen on Friday night.

Werder Bremen will look to cause an early upset by taking down contenders Borussia Dortmund. The visitors headed into the break in fine form and will look to build on it, while the home team will look to make it seven straight wins in all competitions.

Dortmund are top of the table with 12 points in four outings. While they started the season with a 2-1 defeat to Bayern in the Super Cup, the team in yellow and black have been on a roll ever since, winning all six of their games so far.

Prior to the break, they secured a hard-fought 1-0 win over VfB Stuttgart. While it was a closely contested affair, they did get the job done. Dortmund will now look to ensure they can start from where they left off.

Meanwhile, the visitors are eighth on the table with seven points in their four outings. They started the campaign with a defeat, but have been unbeaten since. While the 4-1 defeat to Freiburg was a blow, they won 3-1 against RB Leipzig, secured a 1-1 draw against FC Koln before taking down Augsburg 3-2.

Bremen will be confident of their chances and will certainly look to put up a strong fight against Dortmund. But an away game at the Signal Iduna Park is never easy. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.

Team News & Tactics

Borussia Dortmund

The home team will be without the likes of Emre Can (ACL), Filippo Mane (thigh), Justin Lerma (muscle), and Giannis Konstantelias (knee) due to injury.

Meanwhile, Daniel Svensson (illness), Julian Ryerson (muscle) and Nico Schlotterbeck (ankle) are doubts. However, there are chances that Svensson and Schlotterbeck will make it back in time to start this one.

Borussia Dortmund are expected to line up in a 3-4-2-1 formation, with Gregor Kobel starting between the sticks. Waldemar Anton, Nico Schlotterbeck and Joane Gadou should form the back three, with the trio tasked with keeping the opposition attackers at bay.

Maximilian Beier and Daniel Svensson are expected to operate as the wing-backs, providing width and supporting the attack. Felix Nmecha and Joey Veerman should form the central midfield pairing, with the duo looking to control possession.

Ethan Nwaneri and Fabio Silva are likely to feature in the attacking midfield roles behind Serhou Guirassy, who will lead the line for the home team. The attacking trio will look to combine effectively and create problems for the opposition defence.

Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Kobel; Anton, Schlotterbeck, Gadou; Svensson, Nmecha, Veerman, Beier; Nwaneri, Silva; Guirassy

Werder Bremen

Werder Bremen will be heading into this fixture without quite a few of their first-team stars. Moussa N’Diaye (groin), Felix Agu (calf), Skelly Alvero (calf), Jens Stage (thigh), Senne Lynen (groin), Justin Njinmah (thigh), Keke Topp (ACL) and Salim Musah (thigh) are all out injured.

The visitors are expected to line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Karl Hein starting between the sticks. Arthur and Olivier Deman should feature as the full-backs, while Marco Friedl is likely to partner Amos Pieper in the heart of the defence.

In midfield, Youri Regeer and Ludovit Reis should form the double pivot. The duo will look to protect the backline while ensuring Dortmund midfielders do not run the show.

Eren Dinkci and Marco Grull will take charge on the flanks, providing width to their attacks, while Chuki could take up the number ten role behind Niclas Fullkrug, who will lead the line for the visitors.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Hein; Arthur, Friedl, Pieper, Deman; Regeer, Reis; Dinkci, Chuki, Grull; Fullkrug

Key Stats

• The two teams have faced each other on 32 occasions, with Dortmund winning 21 times, while Bremen have come out on top on just five occasions.
• Dortmund have won each of their last six games in all competitions.
• Werder Bremen have only lost one out of their last five official games.
• The visitors have failed to win any of their last five games against the team in yellow and black.
• Dortmund have only conceded in one out of their four league outings.

Player to Watch

Ethan Nwaneri

Embed from Getty Images

The 19-year-old attacking midfielder has made a decent start to his loan spell at Dortmund. He has started each of their last three league outings, racking up 185 minutes with an assist to his name. However, he will be eager to make a bigger impact and retain his place in the team going forward.

The teenager certainly has the quality to have a big say on the end result of this fixture, and it will be interesting to see if he makes the most out of this opportunity in front of the home fans.

Prediction

Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Werder Bremen

Borussia Dortmund will have the advantage of playing at home and should be full of confidence after winning each of their last six games across competitions. They have made an excellent start to the Bundesliga season and have looked solid at both ends of the pitch.

With their attacking quality and home advantage, Dortmund should be able to create plenty of chances against Bremen. Meanwhile, the visitors have also shown plenty of improvement after their opening-day defeat and will be confident of causing problems for the league leaders.

However, their long injury list could hurt them against a Dortmund side that has plenty of quality across the pitch. Bremen should be capable of finding the back of the net, but the home team are expected to have too much for the visitors. The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-1 win for the home team.