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Borussia Dortmund open their DFB Pokal title defense on Saturday when they travel to the Brita Arena to take on Wehen Wiesbaden.
The Black and Yellows cruised to a 4-1 win over RB Leipzig in the 2020-21 final back in May to clinch their fifth title.
Wehen Wiesbaden enjoyed a superb pre-season campaign, picking up four wins from their four outings.
However, they failed to carry that momentum into the regular season as they played out two consecutive goalless draws in their first two 3. Liga outings.
Rudiger Rehm’s side are currently 12th in the 3. Liga standings and will look to up the ante as they seek promotion into the second tier.
Meanwhile, Dortmund returned to winning ways last Friday when they claimed a comfortable 3-0 victory over Bologna in their final pre-season fixture.
Newly appointed manager Marco Rose watched on as Giovanni Reyna, Lennard Maloney and Steffen Tigges were on target to hand Dortmund the win.
Prior to that, Dortmund were on a two-game losing streak after suffering successive defeats against Vfl Bochum and Atletico Bilbao.
Saturday’s visitors will now aim to build on their latest performance as they begin the hunt for their sixth cup title.
Wehen Wiesbaden vs Borussia Dortmund Head-To-Head
This will be the first-ever meeting between the two German sides and they will both be looking to begin their rivalry on a good note.
Wehen Wiesbaden Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-W-D-D
Borussia Dortmund Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-L-L-W
Wehen Wiesbaden vs Borussia Dortmund Team News
Wehen Wiesbaden
There are no known injuries in the Wehen Wiesbaden camp, meaning manager Rudiger Rehm has a full house at his disposal.
Injured: None
Suspended: None
Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund head into the game with a relatively long absentee list. Soumaïla Coulibaly, Mats Hummels, Youssoufa Moukoko, Mateu, Dan-Axel Zagadou and Marcel Schmelzer will all miss the game due to injuries.
Injured: Soumaïla Coulibaly, Mats Hummels, Youssoufa Moukoko, Mateu, Dan-Axel Zagadou, Marcel Schmelzer
Suspended: None
Wehen Wiesbaden vs Borussia Dortmund Predicted XI
Wehen Wiesbaden Predicted XI (3-4-3): Florian Stritzel; Sascha Mockenhaupt, Florian-Horst Carstens, Ahmet Gurleyen; Gino Fechner, Mehmet Alp Kurt, Emanuel Taffertshofer, Nico Rieble; Kevin Lankford, Gustaf Nilsson, Thijmen Goppel
Borussia Dortmund Predicted XI (4-1-4-1): Gregor Kobel; Felix Passlack, Antonios Papadopoulos, Lennard Maloney, Nico Schulz; Mahmoud Dahoud; Marco Reus, Giovanni Reyna, Steffen Tigges, Julian Brandt; Erling Haaland
Wehen Wiesbaden vs Borussia Dortmund Prediction
Wehen Wiesbaden face a stern test against Borussia Dortmund, who are one of the best sides in Germany. The hosts are no match for the Black and Yellows and we expect this to be evident on the pitch.
We predict the visitors will stroll into the next round with a comfortable win.
Prediction: Wehen Wiesbaden 0-4 Borussia Dortmund
