For Borussia Dortmund, the Champions League is about to face what is supposed to be the trickiest task right from the start. Niclas Füllkrug can hope for his starting eleven debut against Paris Saint-Germain.
BVB starts the new Champions League season on Tuesday evening (9 p.m.). With Paris Saint-Germain, one of the big title candidates is waiting right at the start.
Terzic: “We have great ambitions”
With all due respect to the star ensemble around Kylian Mbappé and the other opponents in the strong Group F – Newcastle United and AC Milan – Edin Terzic was combative on Tuesday: “We know that we have enough quality to be able to annoy title contenders. ” The BVB coach confidently added: “This group is a real challenge. But that doesn’t change the fact that we have great ambitions.”
Work victory against Freiburg
The confidence took over Borussia Dortmund most recently back in the Bundesliga. After a bumpy start, including two draws against Bochum (1:1) and Heidenheim (2:2), BVB managed to turn things around with a 4-2 win in Freiburg on Saturday.
But the shaky labor victory was only of limited encouragement. BVB also faces an opponent of a different caliber. “Unlike in the first four league games, we are not favorites,” said Terzic, referring to the Parisians’ dominant style of play: “We always have to be on tiptoe and very alert.”
Paris is still looking for form in the league
But similar to Dortmund, Paris hasn’t really got going yet in the league with two wins from five games. “The Champions League stage is a completely different stage. This team competed to win the title. That’s why they invested almost 350 million euros again in the summer,” warns BVB sports director Sebastian Kehl.
After last year’s early round of 16 exit against FC Bayern (0-1/0-2), Paris is making a new attempt to win the trophy. With Achraf Hakimi and Ousmane Dembele, PSG will most likely have two ex-Dortmund players in the starting line-up.
Kolo Muani and Füllkrug before their starting eleven debut
100 million new signing Randal Kolo Muani could also celebrate his starting eleven debut for the capital. However, the illustrious names in the squad cannot scare Kehl: “We know what to expect. Nevertheless, we are going to Paris with broad chests and want to take something with us.”
Niclas Füllkrug’s health progress gives us confidence. Dortmund’s last-minute transfer from Bremen had missed the DFB team’s most recent international matches. The 30-year-old played half an hour against Freiburg. Terzic left it open as to whether Füllkrug would be able to replace Sébastien Haller, who has recently been out of form, right from the start: “Niclas handled the 30 minutes in Freiburg well. We’ll see tomorrow whether there’s enough for more.”
