Dortmund Faces Tough Test Against Hoffenheim Away
The transfer window is finally closed. The rumours have quietened down. For Borussia Dortmund, there’s only one item left on the agenda now: play football – and a serious examination is coming fast.
After easing into the season with three points against Hamburg in the league and safe passage past HEBC in the cup, Niko Kovac’s side now run into their first heavyweight clash of the campaign: Hoffenheim away. This is where the tone of Dortmund’s season can shift.
Hoffenheim Reborn Under Ilzer
Don’t let the name on the fixture list fool you. This is not a soft landing.
Hoffenheim finished last season just a single point shy of the Champions League spots. That alone tells you enough about the level they’ve reached. Coach Christian Ilzer has dragged them from the brink to the edge of Europe in double-quick time.
When he arrived in the 2024/25 season, the club was staring at relegation. He steered them to safety, reset the mood, then doubled their points tally last season. That’s not a tweak. That’s a full-scale rebuild.
The summer threatened to disrupt that progress. Bazoumana Toure, their explosive winger, moved on. Fisnik Asllani’s transfer to RB Leipzig collapsed after he failed his medical, and he remains sidelined through injury. Hoffenheim had to react, and they did.
Patrick Wimmer came in from Wolfsburg to fill the Toure-shaped hole out wide. Then came two of the most eye-catching names in the Bundesliga: Mats Rots and Nathan De Cat. De Cat is more than just a memorable name; he’s a dynamic, two-way midfielder expected to slot in alongside Wouter Burger in the middle of the pitch.
Only Wimmer started in Hoffenheim’s wild 2–3 opening defeat to Köln, a game in which they still dominated the ball with 59% possession. You’d expect Ilzer to adjust his starting XI for Dortmund. With Asllani still out, the attacking structure will likely be tweaked again.
What won’t change is their intent. Hoffenheim want the ball. They were fourth in the league for possession last season. They’ll try to dictate. They’ll try to suffocate.
Dortmund’s Questions: Who Plays, How They Play
For Dortmund, this fixture doesn’t just test quality. It tests identity.
First problem: personnel. Konstantelias’s ACL injury and Samuele Inacio’s suspension rip a hole in the line behind Serhou Guirassy. Kovac needs a new partner for Karetsas in those advanced midfield roles.
Three names stand out: Marcel Sabitzer, Carney Chukwuemeka, and new signing Ethan Nwaneri. All bring something different. All could feature. The expectation, though, is that Sabitzer gets the nod. Experience, structure, and a steady hand in a high-stakes away game often win these debates.
Then comes the bigger question: what does Dortmund look like without the ball?
Against both Hamburg sides, Dortmund lived in the attacking half. Across those two matches, they out-shot their opponents 35–9, with 20 of those attempts coming in the Bundesliga opener alone. They imposed themselves, controlled tempo, and fired at will.
Hoffenheim won’t allow that sort of dominance. Last season, they sat fourth in possession numbers. Dortmund were sixth. Two teams who both want to run the game now collide. Someone has to give.
Kovac’s side must either find a way to wrestle control of the midfield from a technically sharp, confident Hoffenheim unit or embrace a different identity for the night: ruthless, efficient, and dangerous with limited touches.
If Dortmund can’t win the ball, they’ll have to win the moments.
The Kramaric Problem
And then there’s Andrej Kramaric.
On paper, calling a 35-year-old super-sub the “Player to Watch” feels odd. On grass, against Dortmund, it makes perfect sense.
Kramaric loves this fixture. Historically, only five players have scored more goals against Borussia Dortmund than the Croatian forward. Four of those names sit in the Bundesliga’s all-time top ten scorers. The fifth is 15th. That’s the company he keeps when he sees black and yellow shirts.
His record reads 11 goals in 18 matches against die Schwarzgelben, including a brace in this very fixture last season. He doesn’t need 90 minutes. He needs half a chance.
Expect him to emerge from the bench with the game stretched, legs tiring, and Dortmund’s back line fully aware of the history he carries into the penalty area.
Kovac’s Blueprint: Back to 3-4-2-1
Tactically, the signs point to a return to what already works.
Kovac experimented with a 4-3-3 in the cup win over HEBC, but against a possession-heavy, technically sharp Hoffenheim, the expectation is a return to the familiar 3-4-2-1.
Gregor Kobel should reclaim his place in goal after Meyer’s cup outing. In front of him, a back three of Gadou, Anton, and Ryerson offers aggression and mobility, vital against Hoffenheim’s fluid attacking patterns.
Out wide, Svensson and Beier are set to operate as wing-backs, providing width in possession and a crucial extra layer of protection when Hoffenheim overload the flanks.
In midfield, Nmecha and Bellingham remain the trusted pivot. They’ll be tasked with the hardest job of the night: stopping Hoffenheim’s rhythm while still feeding Dortmund’s front line. Ahead of them, Sabitzer is expected to join Karetsas in the two supporting roles behind Guirassy.
Up top, Guirassy leads the line again after finding the net last week. He’ll need to be clinical. Dortmund may not get the shot volume they enjoyed against Hamburg. They’ll need their No. 9 to turn half-chances into goals.
A Narrow Margin
This is the kind of early-season match that doesn’t decide a campaign but can define its mood.
Hoffenheim, reborn and ambitious under Ilzer, at home, with the ball at their feet. Dortmund, still unbeaten, still building, but already forced to adapt without key attacking pieces.
The margins look thin. The prediction? A tight, nervy contest – and a narrow 2–1 Dortmund win that would say plenty about their resilience, and even more about where this team is really heading.
