Borussia Dortmund go into their double-header with group favourites Atlético Madrid having taken maximum points from their opening two matches. The first meeting with the Spaniards will take place on Wednesday evening (21:00 CET) at a sold-out Signal Iduna Park, and captain Marco Reus is hoping to make the home advantage count.

"They've been up there for seven or eight years – one of the top teams in Europe," said Lucien Favre of the opposition. "An extremely good team with very good individual players," added Marco Reus, while remaining optimistic. "We're playing at home. It's an important game and we want to get the next three points so that we continue to top the table," the captain continued at the press conference on the eve of the match. The 29-year-old believes BVB will need to be patient: "We'll get few chances to score. So it'll be important to convert them," he explained. Fortunately, the Black & Yellows have been extremely clinical in front of goal so far this season. In Stuttgart, where they clinched a 4-0 away win last weekend, they converted three of their first four opportunities. "Tomorrow we'll urgently need to replicate that," said Reus, highlighting the importance of being effective in front of goal.

Another key attacking player besides Reus, who has seven goals already, is Paco Alcácer, whose fitness to play is currently in doubt. Asked whether the Spain forward would feature against Atlético, Lucien Favre answered: "We don't know yet. We still have two training sessions to go." In other words, the decision will not be taken until after the morning training session on the day of the match.

Defenders Marcel Schmelzer and Manuel Akanji remain unavailable, meaning the young central defensive partnership of Abdou Diallo, 22, and Dan-Axel Zagadou, 19, will face a tough test against Atlético Madrid's world-class forward line. "Of course, I believe in them," said a fully convinced Favre. "They might be young, but they're gradually making progress." (br)