Last week at La Rosaleda, Borussia Dortmund failed to put away some really good chances against Malaga and as a result come into the 2nd leg of their UEFA Champions League Quarterfinal tie at home on level pegging, 0-0 on aggregate. They could have very well come here with at least a 2 goal advantage, away goals to boot, if Mario Gotze in particular had had his finishing boots on.
Of all 4 quarterfinal ties, this one is the most finely balanced. Real Madrid and Bayern Munich have established sizable first leg advantages to be in control in their respective ties while Barcelona inspite of conceding a late equalizer will be more than happy having scored 2 precious away goals and with the 2nd leg at the Camp Nou. Juergen Klopp and Dortmund will no question be disappointed that they have to start with a clean slate, but you would still tip last year's Bundesliga champions to go through.
Dortmund are now the only team in the competition to remain unbeaten after Juventus' run was brought to an end by Bayern Munich last week. They faced stiffer opposition in the group stages and managed to come through with flying colors beating the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester City. So, on paper, Malaga would appear a considerably lighter challenge as compared to those 2 sides. But, this is the knockout stage, when second chances are at a premium and the stakes are that much higher. The quality of the Dortmund strike force is exemplary. It is a team that is never short on goals and Klopp is not the kind of manager that would change the way his team plays in Europe.
Testimony to that was their 1st leg performance where they were clearly the better side. They were abetted by Malaga's resolute dedication to defence with an emphasis on not conceding away goals. Manuel Pellegrini has played it smart so far; in the previous round against Porto, he opted for damage limitation in the 1st leg in Portugal and his side came away with only a 1-0 loss, something which they managed to overturn in the return leg at home. This time with the 1st leg at home, he chose caution by choosing to eliminate the threat of away goals and leaving the fate of the tie to be decided in Gelsinkerchen.
Dortmund boast an intimidating home record in this year's Champions League. They have a perfect record having won all 4 home games, scoring 7 goals and conceding just 1. Gotze has been involved in 6 of the last 10 goals that Dortmund have scored; it is no surprise then that his off color performance in Spain has left his side with work to do at home if they are to progress into the final four. Their front line is as good as it gets with Marko Reus combining with the aforementioned Gotze and Robert Lewandowski to lethal effect. And it is unlikely that Dortmund would be as wasteful as they were in the 1st leg and if Malaga concede early, it could very well be a long night for them.
Malaga to their credit have been very efficient in seeing out games. Unfancied in the group stages, they managed to emerge as winners from a group that included AC Milan and Zenit St. Petersburg, both of whom were heavily favored to come through. They have a good bunch of young players along with some wily veterans such as Joaquin, Martin Demichelis and Javier Saviola in the mix. The pick of the lot is Spanish sensation Isco, who has been a revelation so far and is widely sought after by the big boys of Europe. Good in scoring and setting up others, he will be crucial to Malaga's plans of upsetting the Dortmund apple cart. Malaga, along with Juventus and Porto, have the most clean sheets (5) in this year's competition, and if they can shut out the Germans for the second week running, they may be joining their more illustrious Spanish compatriots in the semi-finals.
TEAM NEWS
Borussia Dortmund will receive a major boost as Mat Hummels is set to return to action after being sidelined with a groin injury that he picked up in the Round of 16 clash against Shakhtar Donetsk. Jakub 'Kuba' Blaszczykowski is also expected to come in to team up with Reus and Gotze in a 3 behind striker Lewandowski.
Malaga suffered a couple of setbacks even as they managed to draw their home leg. 2 of their key players, centre back Weligton and midfielder Manuel Iturra, picked up yellow cards which sees them suspended for the 2nd leg.
Malaga need one goal to make sure that the tie doesn't go the distance and finishes in normal time. Pellegrini has been here before with Villareal and is an expert when it comes to grinding out results. However, with the suspensions to key defenders and the home form of Dortmund, not to forget that they were lucky to escape with a stalemate last week, the Germans would still be slight favorites to go through. A result in the other direction would definitely be an upset.
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