Dortmund Faces Hoffenheim: A Tactical Possession Battle

The transfer window is finally shut. For Borussia Dortmund, the noise has died down and only one thing is left on the agenda: play football. Proper football. And their first real examination of the season comes in Sinsheim.

Six points from six games? Not yet. But they’ve ticked off the early boxes. Three points against Hamburg in the Bundesliga opener, safe passage in the cup against HEBC. Now comes Hoffenheim – a side that spent last season punching above their weight and finished a single point short of the Champions League spots.

This is where the season stops easing you in.

Hoffenheim Reloaded After a Near-Miss

Christian Ilzer has quietly built something sharp at Hoffenheim. When he walked into the club during the 24/25 campaign, they were staring down relegation. He kept them up. Last season, he did more than that – he doubled their points tally and dragged them into the European conversation.

That kind of rise changes expectations. It also changes the transfer market.

They lost Bazoumana Toure, the winger who gave them real thrust out wide. The planned move to bring in Fisnik Asllani from within the club structure to a bigger role never truly took off either; his transfer to RB Leipzig collapsed after a failed medical and he remains out injured.

So Hoffenheim had to get creative.

Patrick Wimmer arrived from Wolfsburg to fill the Toure-sized gap on the flank, a direct and lively option who fits Ilzer’s front-foot approach. Alongside him came two of the most eye-catching names in the Bundesliga: Mats Rots and Nathan De Cat. De Cat, a dynamic two-way midfielder, is expected to slot into the engine room next to Wouter Burger, giving Hoffenheim legs, bite and progression through the middle.

Only Wimmer started their Bundesliga opener, a 2–3 home defeat to Köln, but that feels like a starting point rather than a template. Ilzer is unlikely to stand still for Dortmund’s visit. With Asllani still sidelined, tweaks to the XI are almost inevitable.

Hoffenheim won’t be scared of the ball. They rarely are. They finished fourth in the league for possession last season and saw 59% of it even in defeat to Köln. At home, they’ll want to dictate again.

Dortmund’s Questions: Who Plays, and How?

For Niko Kovac, this trip raises two big questions.

First: personnel. Konstantelias is out with an ACL injury. Samuele Inacio is suspended. That rips out one of the options to operate alongside Karetsas behind Serhou Guirassy in the attacking band.

The candidates are clear. Marcel Sabitzer. Carney Chukwuemeka. New signing Ethan Nwaneri. All three bring different profiles, but the smart money is on Sabitzer stepping in. His experience, his ability to knit play and arrive in the box, and his understanding of Bundesliga tempo make him the most natural plug-in solution for a game of this magnitude.

The second question cuts deeper: style.

Against both Hamburg clubs, Dortmund had it their way. They dominated the ball, they dictated the tempo, and they rained shots on goal – 35 attempts across the two matches, with 20 of those coming in the league opener alone. They controlled, then they crushed.

Hoffenheim won’t just hand them that platform. Ilzer’s side wants the ball just as badly. Last season, only three teams in the Bundesliga saw more of it. Dortmund were sixth themselves, so something has to give.

Kovac’s team must decide: do they try to wrestle control of the midfield and trade punches in possession? Or do they accept long spells without the ball and turn fewer touches into ruthless, efficient chances for Guirassy and the supporting cast?

Either way, this will be their sternest examination of the young season. The comfort of early rhythm is gone. This is a test of identity.

Kramaric: Dortmund’s Familiar Nightmare

The most dangerous man in blue and white might not even start.

At 35, Andrej Kramaric has shifted into a super-sub role, but that label doesn’t blunt the threat. Especially not against Dortmund.

The numbers are brutal. In Borussia Dortmund’s entire history, only five players have scored more goals against die Schwarzgelben than Kramaric. Four of those are in the Bundesliga’s all-time top ten scorers. The fifth sits 15th.

Kramaric isn’t just padding stats. He has 11 goals in 18 matches against Dortmund, including a brace in this very fixture last season. He knows the spaces, he knows the angles, and he relishes the matchup.

Expect Ilzer to keep him in reserve again, ready to step off the bench when legs tire and gaps appear. If the game is tight in the final half-hour, the Croatian will be circling with a point to prove.

How Dortmund Are Likely to Line Up

Kovac experimented with a 4-3-3 in the cup win over HEBC. It worked well enough for that night, but this feels like a different assignment. Against a possession-heavy Hoffenheim, he is widely expected to revert to his trusted 3-4-2-1.

Gregor Kobel should come back in between the posts after Alexander Meyer’s cup outing.

In front of him, a back three of Gadou, Anton, and Julian Ryerson offers aggression and mobility, with Ryerson again the flexible piece who can step wide or inside as needed.

Out wide, Svensson and Beier are set to operate as wing-backs, asked to sprint the length of the pitch and close down Hoffenheim’s wide threats while still providing width in transition.

The midfield pivot remains familiar: Nmecha and Bellingham as the go-to duo in the centre. They’ll carry the burden of deciding the game’s rhythm – either by breaking Hoffenheim’s possession chains or by giving Dortmund enough control to push higher up the pitch.

Ahead of them, Sabitzer is the likely replacement for Konstantelias, joining Karetsas in the two advanced midfield roles behind Guirassy. That trio offers a blend of movement, physicality, and finishing that can punish Hoffenheim if Dortmund break cleanly.

Guirassy, fresh from his goal last week, should lead the line again. One chance can be enough with him.

The stage is set for a tight, tactical fight. Dortmund’s ambition against Hoffenheim’s structure. Possession against precision.

Is this where Kovac’s Dortmund show they can win a game without owning the ball?