1. Bundesliga
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Played
February 11, 2012 2:30 PM GMT
Signal-Iduna-Park — Dortmund
Referee:‬ G. Perl‎
Attendance:‬ 80400‎
 
45′ Shinji Kagawa
 

Bundesliga Preview: Dortmund - Leverkusen

Last year's champions and runners-up meet, with the hosts looking to pull further away from the pack and their guests hoping to rebound from a poor run of results

By Clark Whitney

More On :  Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Borussia Dortmund vs Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen v Borussia Dortmund, Shinji Kagawa, Lars Bender
Bongarts


PROBABLE LINEUPS

DORTMUND


Weidenfeller
Piszczek, Subotic, Hummels, Schmelzer
Leitner, Kehl
Kuba, Kagawa, Grosskreutz
Lewandowski
LEVERKUSEN

Hertha BSC
Leno
Corluka, Schwaab, Friedrich, Oczipka
Rolfes, Reinartz, Bender
Castro, Schurrle
Kiessling

Dortmund enter Saturday's match depleted by injuries, with midfielders Mario Gotze and Sven Bender both sidelined. The pair will be replaced by right-winger Jakub 'Kuba' Blaszczykowski and Moritz Leitner, respectively. Julian Koch is back in training, but is still far from fit to return to action.

Leverkusen are also short of staff, with Eren Derdiyok absent due to a nasty slash to his foot, Sidney Sam out with a muscular injury, Michal Kadlec suspended, and Rene Adler and Tranquillo Barnetta still in rehabilitation for long-term injuries. Bayer are expected to line-up in a 4-3-3 formation, with Lars Bender, Stefan Reinartz and Simon Rolfes anchoring the midfield.


 DID YOU KNOW
  • Dortmund have lost just one of their last nine meetings with Leverkusen, winning and drawing four apiece.
  • The title holders have not been defeated in 14 Bundesliga games, the longest such streak at the moment.
  • BVB have not been held scoreless for 16 domestic games.
  • Leverkusen have not been beaten in six matches away from home, having won two and drawn four times.
  • Robin Dutt's side have won just eight domestic games this season, their lowest tally after 20 matchdays since 2006-07.
  • Should he feature in Saturday's match, Gonzalo Castro will make his 200th Bundesliga appearance.

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Field Report
Reader's Predictions
Top 3 Predictions
  • Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
    18.69 %
  • Borussia Dortmund 2-0 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
    17.76 %
  • Borussia Dortmund 2-1 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
    14.64 %
Head to Head
1. Bundesliga ‎(GER1)‎ Feb 11, 2012 Borussia Dortmund 1 - Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0
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1. Bundesliga ‎(GER1)‎ Aug 27, 2011 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0 - Borussia Dortmund 0
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1. Bundesliga ‎(GER1)‎ Jan 14, 2011 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1 - Borussia Dortmund 3
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1. Bundesliga ‎(GER1)‎ Aug 22, 2010 Borussia Dortmund 0 - Bayer 04 Leverkusen 2
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1. Bundesliga ‎(GER1)‎ Mar 20, 2010 Borussia Dortmund 3 - Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0
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Last Five Matches
Borussia Dortmund
May 12, 2012Borussia Dortmund 5 - FC Bayern München 2GERC
May 5, 2012Borussia Dortmund 4 - SC Freiburg 0GER1
Apr 28, 20121. FCK 2 - Borussia Dortmund 5GER1
Apr 21, 2012Borussia Dortmund 2 - Borussia Mönchengladbach 0GER1
Apr 14, 2012Schalke 04 1 - Borussia Dortmund 2GER1
Bayer 04 Leverkusen
May 5, 2012Nürnberg 1 - Bayer 04 Leverkusen 4GER1
Apr 28, 2012Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1 - Hannover 96 0GER1
Apr 21, 2012Hoffenheim 0 - Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1GER1
Apr 14, 2012Bayer 04 Leverkusen 3 - Hertha BSC 3GER1
Apr 11, 2012Bayer 04 Leverkusen 3 - 1. FCK 1GER1
Odds
Returns: Dortmund £14.44 PaddyPower Sign up with Paddy Power - Bet £10, Get £20!
Returns: Draw £150.00 WilliamHill Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Returns: Leverkusen £710.00 WilliamHill Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Team News
Available Squads
1Roman WeidenfellerGoalkeeper
4Neven SuboticDefender
15Mats HummelsDefender
26Lukasz PiszczekDefender
29Marcel SchmelzerDefender
5Sebastian KehlMidfielder
16Jakub BlaszczykowskiMidfielder
19Kevin GroßkreutzMidfielder
22Sven BenderMidfielder
23Shinji KagawaMidfielder
9Robert LewandowskiStriker
20Mitchell LangerakGoalkeeper
25Patrick OwomoyelaDefender
27Felipe SantanaDefender
7Moritz LeitnerMidfielder
14Ivan PerisicMidfielder
21Ilkay GündoganMidfielder
18L. BarriosStriker
23Bernd LenoGoalkeeper
2Daniel SchwaabDefender
3Stefan ReinartzDefender
4Bastian OczipkaDefender
5Manuel FriedrichDefender
14Vedran CorlukaDefender
27Gonzalo CastroDefender
6Simon RolfesMidfielder
8Lars BenderMidfielder
9Andre SchürrleStriker
11Stefan KießlingStriker
36Fabian GieferGoalkeeper
20Danny da CostaDefender
21Ömer ToprakDefender
10Renato AugustoMidfielder
13Michael BallackMidfielder
17Michael OrtegaMidfielder
38Karim BellarabiStriker
Players to Watch
Moritz Leitner
Moritz Leitner
Position: Midfielder
Squad Number: 7
Games Goals YC RC
17 0 0 0
The young midfielder is expected to start in place of Sven Bender. He is a different type of player compared to the hard-nosed enforcer, and his creativity and skill in making play from deep areas will add the kind of character to BVB that has been missing since Nuri Sahin's departure last summer.
Andre Schürrle
Andre Schürrle
Position: Striker
Squad Number: 9
Games Goals YC RC
31 7 1 1
Leverkusen need a spark, and the player most capable of delivering such inspiration is Schurrle. The Germany international is the most talented player on his team, but has been out of form in recent months. Perhaps with the Champions League returning next week, and with his side facing the leaders and defending champions,  he will summon the class of yesteryear.
Prediction
Leverkusen have a good run without losing away from home, but their record against BVB is poor, and the hosts are in remarkable form at the moment. B04 will be without several key figures, and that could make all the difference.
Editor's Prediction
Dortmund 2
Leverkusen 0
Results
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Top Scorers
Player   Goals Penalties
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
Striker
Schalke 		29 6
Mario Gomez Mario Gomez
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Bayern 		26 4
Robert Lewandowski Robert Lewandowski
Striker
Dortmund 		22 0
Lukas Podolski Lukas Podolski
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FC Koln 		18 3
Claudio Pizarro Claudio Pizarro
Striker
Werder Bremen 		18 2