Borussia Dortmund will face Sporting Lisbon for their next Group C clash in the UEFA Champions League. Borussia Dortmund will be meeting Sporting Lisbon for the third time in the competition, having previously been drawn into the same group in the year 2016-17. Dortmund have won both their previous matches against Sporting Lisbon.
Dortmund started off their Champions League campaign with a win against Turkish side Besiktas. Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham scored goals for Dortmund in the first half as they took a 2-0 lead against Besiktas. But Besiktas gave a late scare to the Dortmund players as they pulled one back and were dominating play in the last ten minutes of the game.
The above visual shows us the shot map of Borussia Dortmund in their game against Besiktas. Dortmund attempted a total of 15 shots in the game and had almost 50% of their shots on target. Erling Haaland attempted the most shots for them with the five attempts he had on goal. They also had a very high xG because of the higher number of shots they attempted from inside the penalty box.
Jude Bellingham was the standout performer for Dortmund as he did all the right things in the game. He had a high xT from his passes as well as the dribbles he attempted in the game. He also scored the opener for Dortmund and also set up Erling Haaland for the second goal.
The duo have been performing well for Dortmund since the start of the season. Haaland is the top scorer in the Bundesliga with seven goals and Bellingham has already bagged three assists in six games. But Haaland’s presence for their Champions League game is doubtful as the Norwegian missed out on their match against Gladbach and it is not yet confirmed whether he will be available for selection on Tuesday. Dortmund have a rather long injury list with important squad members like Julian Brandt, Emre Can and Giovanni Reyna set to miss the game.
Sporting Lisbon had a disappointing start to their Champions League campaign as Ajax put five goals past the home side. After winning the Primeira Liga title for the first time since 2002, they have got off to a fairly strong start after winning five and drawing two of their opening seven games, but already sit four points behind Benfica, who have enjoyed a perfect start.
Sporting Lisbon scored pulled one back in the first half against Ajax, but the Dutch side dominated later in the second half to put the game to bed. Sporting failed to create any threat in the final third of the pitch and inside the penalty area. Jovane Cabral was able to impose a threat on the Ajax defenders but their other players failed to make the right moves when they had the opportunity.
Dortmund have not had a very good defensive record so far in the domestic league as the German side have conceded 12 goals in just six matches. Sporting Lisbon will look to use this to their full advantage when they face them on Tuesday. Sporting Lisbon will now look to ensure they do not fall behind in the race to qualify for the final 16 of the Champions League and get their first win. Dortmund will be looking to bounce back from their weekend loss to Gladbach and continue their winning run in the Champions League.
