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Eight-time German Championship winners, Borussia Dortmund are among the most successful and followed clubs in Germany. BVB are known for their development of players as they groomed a number of superstars in recent years.
However, they always struggle to compete with the financial powers of the big clubs and find it difficult to keep hold of their players when top guns come calling for them. They have sold three players to Bayern Munich alone in the last five years.
Nevertheless, they still have a decent squad and could have proven to be a serious threat to Bayern Munich's Bundesliga dominance if they had managed to keep all their star players at the club.
Right on this note, here's how Borussia Dortmund could have lined up if they hadn't sold their best players.
Formation- 4-3-3
Goalkeeper- Roman Burki
Borussia Dortmund signed Roman Burki from SC Freiburg to replace the ageing Roman Weidenfeller in the summer of 2015 and the Swiss international has done a decent job for Dortmund thus far.
The 28-year-old started his career with Young Boys but made a name for himself only while playing for Grasshopper. He won the Swiss Cup 2013 with the Zurich based club before joining SC Freiburg in 2014.
He impressed with his performances for SC Freiburg, which earned him a move to one of Germany's biggest clubs, Borussia Dortmund. He has played 144 games for BVB till now and managed to keep 54 clean sheets. Burki also helped Dortmund win the DFB Pokal 2016-17
The Swiss international is among the leading candidates to win the Bundesliga Golden Glove as he has kept four clean sheets in 10 matches that he played in.
Full Backs- Antonio Rudiger & Marcel Schmelzer
Antonio Rüdiger is a centre-back by trade but is also capable of playing at right-back.
The 25- year-old was a part of BVB's youth academy for three years but he failed to break into Dortmund's first team and was eventually sold to VfB Stuttgart in 2011. Rudiger made his professional debut for the Die Roten in 2013 and went on to play 66 Bundesliga games for the team before joining AS Roma in 2015.
He enjoyed two successful seasons at the Stadio Olimpico and moved to Chelsea in the summer transfer window of 2017. He has established himself as one of the best defenders in the Premier League with the Blues and played a vital role in Chelsea's 2017-18 FA Cup success.
Marcel Schmelzer joined the Borussia Dortmund's youth academy in 2005 and has been at the club since then.
The former German international has made 247 Bundesliga appearances for the BVB thus far, scoring two times. He won two Bundesliga titles, two DFB-Pokal trophies, and two DFL Super Cups with Dortmund and also played a vital role in his team's run to the finals of Champions League 2012-13.
Centre-backs- Mats Hummels & Manuel Akanji
After failing to break into Bayern Munich's first team, Mats Hummels joined Borussia Dortmund on loan during the 2008-2009 season. This move was later made permanent at the start of the 2009-2010 season.
The German international played 225 Bundesliga games for the BVB and helped the team win two league titles. He was a part of FIFA FIFPro World XI second Team in 2014 and was also included in the Bundesliga Team of the Season on three different occasions.
Hummels left Dortmund to rejoin Bayern Munich in 2016 and is currently among the best defenders in the world.
Manuel Akanji joined Borussia Dortmund from Basel during the January transfer window of 2018 and is an integral part of the team since then.
Borussia Dortmund are unbeaten in the league this season and Akanji played a big part in their success. The Swiss international has completed 580 passes in the Bundesliga this season with an impressive passing accuracy of 93.4 per cent. He also made 40 clearances and won eight of his 11 attempted tackles in the Bundesliga.
Midfielders- Ilkay Gundagon, Henrikh Mkhitaryan & Marco Reus
Ilkay Gundogan joined Borussia Dortmund from 1. FC Nurnberg in 2011 and went straight into the BVB's first team.
He played 105 games, scoring ten goals during his six-year stay at the Signal Iduna Park and helped the club win one Bundesliga title along with one DFB-Pokal and one DFL Supercup. Gundogan was also included in the ESM Team of the Year 2013 for his performances.
The 28-year-old left BVB to join Manchester City in 2016 and is currently enjoying his football under Pep Guardiola at the Etihad stadium.
Borussia Dortmund beat a number of big clubs to sign Henrikh Mkhitaryan from Skhatar Donetsk in 2013.
He turned out to be an excellent business for the club and the Armenian helped the BVB win the DFL Super-Cup 2014. Mkhitaryan was a part of the Bundesliga Team of the Season 2015-2016 and was also the Assist King of the Bundesliga in the same season.
The 29-year-old played 90 Bundesliga games, scoring 23 goals before leaving Dortmund for Manchester United in 2016. However, he failed to replicate his BVB form at the Old Trafford and eventually moved to Arsenal in the January transfer window of 2018.
A current German international, Marco Reus is a versatile footballer who is capable of playing on either wing or even as an attacking midfielder.
Marco Reus joined Borussia Dortmund from Borussia Monchengladbach in 2012 and is an integral part of the team since then. He represented the Dortmund club in 147 Bundesliga games, scoring 71 times.
Reus won the Bundesliga Player of the Season accolade twice he and was also included in the Bundesliga Team of the Year on five different occasions.
Attackers- Ousmane Dembele, Robert Lewandowski & Pierre Emrick Aubameyang
One of the best young attackers in the world right now, Ousmane Dembele joined Borussia Dortmund from Rennes in 2016.
He enjoyed a great first season at the Westfalenstadion and helped the BVB win the DFB-Pokal 2016-17. Dembele won the Bundesliga Rookie of the Season 2017-18 and was also included in the Bundesliga Team of the Season 2017-18 for his performances.
However, his stay in Germany didn't last for long and he joined Barcelona after just one season with the North Rhine-Westphalia based club.
The Polish international, Robert Lewandowski joined Borrusia Dortmund from Lech Poznan in 2010 and played 131 Bundesliga games, scoring 74 goals for the club.
He helped the BVB win two Bundesliga titles along with one DFB-Pokal and one DFL-Supercup. He was also among the top Dortmund's performers during their run to the finals of Champions League in 2013.
The 30-year-old left Dortmund to join their rivals Bayern Munich in 2015 and is currently among the best strikers in the world.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was signed by Borussia Dortmund for £13 million in the summer transfer window of 2013 and he enjoyed a wonderful spell with the BVB. He played 144 Bundesliga games for Borussia Dortmund and scored 98 goals.
Aubameyang won the Bundesliga Golden Boot 2016-17 and was also a part of Bundesliga Team of the Year 2015-16. The former AC Milan attacker won the African Footballer of the Year 2015 accolade and was a part of the CAF Team of the Year on four different occasions.
The 29-year-old left Dortmund to join Arsenal in 2018 and is currently playing for the Gunners.
