After a chastening defeat at the hands of RB Leipzig in their previous Bundesliga outing, Borussia Dortmund will hope for a positive result when they face VfB Stuttgart on Friday.
The loss to Leipzig left Borussia Dortmund nine points adrift of leaders Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga table.
Marco Rose’s side are winless in their last two league games as their hopes of winning the league are slowly fading away with just six more games left to play.
Stuttgart, on the other hand, are still playing for their Bundesliga status. They are just a point ahead of Arminia Bielefeld and Hertha Berlin, who occupy 16th and 17th place respectively in the league table.
Pellegrino Matarazzo’s side are in a decent run of form, however, having remained unbeaten in their last four Bundesliga games.
VfB Stuttgart vs Borussia Dortmund Head-to-head
The head-to-head record between the two sides is pretty close as Stuttgart have won this fixture 43 times. Dortmund are slightly ahead with 46 wins, while there have been 24 draws between the two sides.
Dortmund have dominated the more recent meetings between the two, having won eight out of their last 10 games. Stuttgart have managed just two wins, the last of which came in December 2020 when they shocked Die Schwarzgelben 5-1 on their own patch.
VfB Stuttgart form guide: L-W-D-W-D
Borussia Dortmund form guide: D-W-W-D-L
VfB Stuttgart vs Borussia Dortmund Team News
VfB Stuttgart
Nikolas Nartey, Silas Katompa Mvumpa, Naouirou Ahamada, Lilian Egloff and Mohamed Sankoh are not expected to feature. Sasa Kalajdzic has tested positive for COVID-19 and has been ruled out.
Daniel Didavi is back in individual training, but the game against Dortmund has come too soon for him. Philipp Forster is also a doubt.
Injured: Nikolas Nartey, Silas Katompa Mvumpa, Naouirou Ahamada, Lilian Egloff, Mohamed Sankoh, Sasa Kalajdzic (COVID-19)
Doubtful: Philipp Forster, Daniel Didavi
Suspended: Waldemar Anton
Borussia Dortmund
Nico Schulz, Felix Passlack, Steffen Tigges and Thomas Meunier are unavailable, while Mateo Morey is still unlikely to be risked by Rose.
Injured: Nico Schulz, Felix Passlack, Steffen Tigges, Thomas Meunier, Marcel Schmelzer
Doubtful: Mateu Morey
Suspended: None
VfB Stuttgart vs Borussia Dortmund Predicted Lineups
Probable Stuttgart XI (3-4-2-1): Florian Muller; Pascal Stenzel, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Hiroki Ito; Borna Sosa, Wataru Endo, Atakan Karazor, Orel Mangala; Tiago Tomas, Chris Führich; Omar Marmoush
Probable Borussia Dortmund XI (3-4-3): Gregor Kobel; Emre Can, Manuel Akanji, Mats Hummels; Thorgan Hazard, Axel Witsel, Jude Bellingham, Raphael Guerreiro; Marco Reus, Erling Haaland, Donyell Malen
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VfB Stuttgart vs Borussia Dortmund Prediction
Stuttgart are in a good run of form and we expect a strong performance from them at home. They could pick up a vital point against Borussia Dortmund on Friday.
Prediction: VfB Stuttgart 1-1 Borussia Dortmund