Head coach Markus Weinzierl is confident nonetheless, per Mounir Zitouni of sport magazine Kicker (link in German), saying this week that his team could be the first to beat Dortmund this year because it showed time and time again they can win points against the best teams in the league. Dortmund, on the other hand, know they still have an ever-so-small chance at the title, sitting five points behind Bayern Munich, so they need to keep churning out results in case the table-toppers slip up in the last few matches of the season. The home fans might hope for a European hangover in the Black and Yellows' ranks; however, Sunday's visitors have won all but one league match following Europa League matches, with their single loss coming in October at Bayern.
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Sunday will be the third contest of the season after the two sides met in the DFB-Pokal round of 16 in December. Dortmund have won both previous matchups of the campaign, beating Augsburg 5-1 in the league and 2-0 in the cup. Sunday's hosts have never beaten Dortmund at home and only once managed to win a point—and that came in the first meeting at WWK-Arena in 2012. Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored BVB's second in the 2-0 cup win over Augsburg in December. CHRISTOF STACHE/Getty ImagesDate: Sunday, March 20Time: 4:30 p. m. GMT/12:30 p. ET/5:30 p. local timeVenue: WWK-Arena, AugsburgTV Info: BT Sport Europe (UK only)/Fox Deportes (U. S. only)Live Stream: BT Sport live streaming (UK only)/Fox Soccer 2Go (U. only)Form GuideAugsburgDortmundLiverpool: Loss (1-0)Darmstadt: Win (2-0)Monchengladbach: Draw (2-2)Bayern: Draw (0-0)Hoffenheim: Loss (2-1)Tottenham: Win (3-0)Leverkusen: Draw (3-3)Mainz: Win (2-0)Darmstadt: Draw (2-2)Tottenham: Win (2-1)Predicted LineupsAugsburgWeinzierl's side will get a boost in the return of captain Paul Verhaegh after the right-back missed the 2-2 draw at Darmstadt with a cold.
The South Korean is a very tidy player who always seems to be in the right position to poach a goal. Ja-Cheol Koo can be a lot to handle on his day. CHRISTOF STACHE/Getty ImagesHis hat-trick against Bayer Leverkusen might not have earned his side a win—Leverkusen equalised through a penalty in stoppage time—but it showed that Koo, a player Tuchel brought in while at Mainz, is on top of his game at the moment. He has four goals and two assists to his name in the last five league matches.
Borussia Dortmund vs FC Augsburg live score, H2H and lineups
Augsburg vs. Borussia Dortmund: Team News, Preview, Live
Jeffrey Gouweleeuw could also return in central defence after sitting out the last match with a suspension. Paul Verhaegh's return to the XI will be a welcome boost. CHRISTOF STACHE/Getty ImagesRaul Bobadilla, meanwhile, trained individually during the week following muscle problems, and Weinzierl isn't sure if he'll make it in time, per Zitouni. Another spot up for grabs is at left-back, where Philipp Max could replace Konstantinos Stafylidis. Predicted starting XI: Hitz; Verhaegh, Gouweleeuw, Klavan, Max; Baier; Esswein, Kohr, Koo, Caiuby; Finnbogason.
Augsburg v Borussia Dortmund Live Commentary, Feb 27, 2022