VfL Bochum will aim to recover from humiliation on the opening weekend of the Bundesliga season when Borussia Dortmund visit Vonovia Ruhrstadion on Saturday.
The Blues suffered a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Stuttgart last time out, while BVB left it late to snatch a 1-0 victory over FC Koln.
Match preview
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After finishing only two points clear of the bottom three last season, VfL Bochum would have been eager to hit the ground running in 2023-24, but they ended up making the worst possible start to the new campaign.
Thomas Letsch's side endured an embarrassing 5-0 crushing at Stuttgart on the opening weekend, allowing both Serhou Guirassy and Silas Katompa Mvumpa to bag a brace in the rout, with former Dortmund defender Dan-Axel Zagadou completing the scoring.
Not only did Bochum see just 39% of the ball at Mercedes-Benz Arena, but they also faced a barrage of 21 shots, managing a solitary attempt on target in reply.
It is also worth pointing out that Bochum suffered a penalty-shootout defeat against Arminia Bielefeld in the first round of the DFB-Pokal earlier this month, drawing 2-2 with the third-tier outfit before losing 4-1 on spot kicks.
The Blues lost 19 of their 34 league outings last season, meaning that no team suffered more Bundesliga defeats than Bochum in 2022-23, and they also finished the previous campaign with the worst defensive record in the division.
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Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund kicked off their campaign with a 6-1 thrashing of Schott Mainz in the DFB-Pokal, racking up 73% possession and 24 shots, with Sebastien Haller scoring twice in the rout.
Dortmund maintained their 100% record in 2023-24 by defeating FC Koln last weekend, although Edin Terzic's side almost shared the spoils with the Billy Goats as they struggled to find a way through, despite notching 13 shots while enjoying the lion's share of the ball.
However, the deadlock was finally broken with 88 minutes on the clock, as Donyell Malen scrambled the ball home from a Julian Brandt corner to hand his side all three points at the death.
Following the agony of surrendering the title to Bayern Munich on the final day of the previous campaign, Die Schwarzgelben will be determined to go one better this season, having watched Bayern claim each of the past 11 titles.
Dortmund have finished as runners-up in four of the previous five Bundesliga seasons, with seven second-placed finishes coming since their last title in 2011-12, but they can take confidence from the fact that they pushed Bayern all the way last term.
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Team News
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Bochum started the season without several players due to injury, with Matus Bero (muscle), Moritz-Broni Kwarteng (groin), Tim Oermann (groin) and Mohammed Tolba (knee) missing the thrashing at Stuttgart.
Thomas Letsch is expected to ring the changes following last weekend's humiliation, although Philipp Hofmann should continue to lead the line in a 3-4-2-1 formation, while Christopher Antwi-Adjei and Takuma Asano will likely support the striker.
Dortmund have several injury absentees of their own, with Julien Duranville (thigh), Thomas Meunier (thigh), Giovanni Reyna (foot) and Mateu Morey Bauza (fitness) all expected to miss Saturday's clash.
New signing Marcel Sabitzer will continue to operate in front of the back four alongside Emre Can, allowing Julian Brandt, Marco Reus and Donyell Malen to offer attacking support to lone striker Sebastien Haller.
At the opposite end of the pitch, goalkeeper Gregor Kobel will continue between the sticks, while Niklas Sule and Mats Hummels will resume their partnership at centre-back.
VfL Bochum possible starting lineup:
Reimann; Masovic, Ordets, Bernardo; Passlack, Losilla, Stoger, Wittek; Asano, Antwi-Adjei; Hofmann
Borussia Dortmund possible starting lineup:
Kobel; Ryerson, Sule, Hummels, Bensebaini; Sabitzer, Can; Malen, Reus, Brandt; Haller
We say: VfL Bochum 1-3 Borussia Dortmund
After conceding five goals in a dismal display last time out, Bochum will be desperate to avoid another mauling this weekend, meaning that Letsch should set his team up to defend.
Still, Dortmund possess more than enough attacking firepower to break through Bochum's backline, so we expect the visitors to claim a comfortable victory at Vonovia Ruhrstadion.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Ben Morris
