Borussia Dortmund should be feeling optimistic ahead of their trip to Hanover. The opening-day victory over Leipzig should have boosted their belief in their own strengths and the Black & Yellows have tended to do quite well in Hanover over the years.

That was not the case a year ago, though, as André Breitenreiter's side surprised their visitors from Dortmund, who were at the time coached by Peter Bosz and top of the table. The 96ers boss opted for speed, allowed BVB to have the ball and overran them whenever the chance to counter presented itself. "We let ourselves be hit on the counter naively," recalls Michael Zorc. "We made it very easy for them to score goals against us."

However, the Borussia Dortmund Sporting Director is not usually a fan of using the past to predict the future. "I don't place too much emphasis on results that were obtained in recent years. We have a new team and a new coach. I believe that he'll give the squad the right instructions to be successful there."

Lucien Favre, who has observed the opposition closely, said: "Hannover played well in Bremen, very compact, very difficult to play against."

It is certainly likelier to be a test of patience rather than an open encounter when the teams meet on Friday evening (20:30 CET, live on Eurosport). But hopefully there will be a happier ending for BVB, whose 4-2 defeat last season was preceded by three consecutive victories at the HDI Arena. (br)