Pre-Match Report
BVB best team in the second half of the season against Leverkusen – facts to the game
The scenario: Second-placed versus sixth-placed. Borussia Dortmund enter match day 29 nine points behind the league leaders and 11 points ahead of the clubs in third and fourth place. Bayer Leverkusen are sixth-placed, 15 points behind Dortmund.
Home/Away: Borussia have won 11 of their 14 home games so far and lost only once at home. Leverkusen's away record is positive, with six wins, four draws, and four defeats.
Head-to-head: Borussia Dortmund have lost only one of their last seven Bundesliga matches against Bayer Leverkusen, but suffered a 1-0 home defeat in the DFB Pokal round of 16 this season. There has been no home win in the last seven encounters between the two teams (including cup matches). In the Bundesliga, Leverkusen have suffered more defeats (53) and conceded more goals (178) only against Bayern Munich than against Borussia Dortmund (38 and 155, respectively).
Statistics: The Black & Yellows have won their last four league matches and, with 28 out of a possible 33 points, are the best team in the second half of the season. The last 14 matches, they have scored at least two goals in every game – and have consistently kept a clean sheet. Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel has already kept 13 clean sheets this season (no other goalkeeper has more than ten). Leverkusen have been unbeaten in six matches. Their only defeat in the last eleven games came in an away match against Union Berlin (1-0). After three consecutive draws, Bayer finally secured a victory with a spectacular 6-3 home win against VfL Wolfsburg.
Reverse fixture: Both teams balanced each other in the first half until Aaron Anselmino won a header after a free-kick cross from Daniel Svensson, scoring 1-0 (41). It was Dortmund's first shot on target. Karim Adeyemi doubled the lead with a header in the 65th minute, and his teammates subsequently missed several chances to extend the lead to 3-0. Instead, Christian Kofane scored a goal for the hosts, making it 2-1 (83).
Biggest home win: During their time together in the second division, there was once a 7-0 victory. On 4 March 2017, fans saw a total of eight goals in BVB's 6-2 win, scored by Ousmane Dembele, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2), Christian Pulisic, Andre Schürrle and Raphael Guerreiro. Kevin Volland and Wendell had brought Leverkusen back to a one goal difference when scoring 2-1 and then 3-2, but then BVB scored three more goals within 15 minutes.
Compiled by Boris Rupert