Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid – Match Preview

The second of the week’s Champions League semi-final first legs sees Borussia Dortmund host Real Madrid.

Dortmund may be seen as the dark horses in a last four bursting with the best in European football but Jurgen Klopp’s side are the only team unbeaten in the tournament so far and have won every match in the Champions League at the Westfalenstadion.

The news of Mario Goetze‘s pending move to Bayern Munich could unsettle the camp ahead of the fixture but the man management prowess of their manager is likely to result in focused minds for the match.

Real Madrid lost when they went to Germany in the group stages and Jose Mourinho must contend with an indifferent Champions League away record going in to the semi-final.

His side have won just two out of five games on their travels in Europe this campaign as the Portuguese coach looks to add a third European Cup to his honours list before an anticipated departure from the Bernabeu in the summer.

 

STATS

Borussia Dortmund have only won one of their six competitive encounters with Real Madrid (D3, L2).

Dortmund have the best defensive record of the sides left in the competition with nine goals conceded this season.

This is the third consecutive season that Real Madrid have reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. The last time they reached the final, however, was back in 2002.

Dortmund have the best home record of the four sides still standing in this season’s competition, having won all five of the matches on their own turf.

 

HEAD TO HEAD

LAST FIVE MATCHES


MATCH FACTS

  • Borussia Dortmund overcame Real Madrid in the group stage this season, triumphing 2-1 at home and drawing 2-2 away.
  • Midfielder Nuri Sahin spent one season at the Santiago Bernabeu and a loan period at Liverpool before returning to BVB in January.
  • Jurgen Klopp’s side are the only unbeaten team in the competition and knocked Malaga out in the last round.
  • Real Madrid have won just once on 24 visits to Germany and crashed out of the Champions League to Bundesliga opposition at this stage last season.
  • Star playmaker Mesut Ozil  was born in Dortmund‘s Ruhr heartland and started his career at local rivals Schalke.
  • Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 11 goals in the Champions League this season. He needs three more to match Lionel Messi‘s total from last year.

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