The UEFA Champions League final between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid is set to be an intriguing tactical encounter at Wembley on Saturday.
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Real are the heavy favorites but Dortmund have shown they can frustrate the big boys and in a head-to-head scrap there are so many individual battles to look forward to.
Below are the Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid predicted lineups for the final, with analysis on how Edin Terzic and Carlo Ancelotti could cause a few surprises with their team selections.
Borussia Dortmund predicted lineup, formation, analysis
——- Kobel ——-
—- Ryerson —- Hummels —- Schlotterbeck —- Maatsen —-
—— Can —— Sabitzer ——
—— Sancho —— Brandt —— Adeyemi ——
——- Fullkrug ——
The back four is very settled for Dortmund and the experience of Hummels has been key to holding firm in this unexpected run to the final, while goalkeeper Kobel has also been exceptional amid several defensive masterclasses. Maatsen’s pace and trickery at left back could be a huge factor in shutting down Real Madrid as he will be tasked with keeping Rodrygo quiet. In midfield the experience duo of Emre Can and Marcel Sabitzer have proved their doubters wrong and keep the ball extremely well. And that is key to getting Sancho, Brandt and Adeyemi involved as much as possible as they cut inside and interchange. Having the likes of Reus, Moukoko and Malen to come off the bench also gives Dortmund plenty of options in the attacking third, with Fullkrug a brilliant focal point to their attack and his hold-up play will allow them to ease some of the considerable pressure they will be under on Saturday. Dortmund will look to sit back in a 4-5-1 formation without the ball and not allow Real space in-behind and then spring attacks of their own quickly by hitting Fullkrug early and getting Sancho and Adeyemi high and wide up the pitch.
Real Madrid predicted lineup, formation, analysis
——- Courtois ——-
—- Carvajal —- Rudiger —- Nacho —- Mendy —-
—— Valverde —— Kroos —— Camavinga ——
—— Bellingham ——
—— Rodrygo —— Vinicius Jr ——
Ancelotti has yet to make a decision in terms of his starting goalkeeper with Lunin standing in superbly to help get them to the final but now Thibaut Courtois is back fit and given his experience and penchant for delivering in the big finals, you’d expect the Belgian to get the nod. The back four picks itself with Nacho rolling back the years and he and Rudiger will relish the challenge of trying to keep Fullkrug quiet in a similar way to how they tamed Erling Haaland. Midfield is the big issue for Real Madrid. Aurelien Tchouameni is out injured so Federico Valverde, Toni Kroos and Eduardo Camavinga are likely to start to give Real a solid defensive shield in front of their back four. But will Luka Modric start given all of his big-game experience? Jude Bellingham will start in attacking midfield, maybe drifting slightly to the left, and his driving runs forward will open up space for the duo of Rodrygo and Vinicius to peel off and cause havoc. Especially on the counter as this 4-3-1-2 formation will turn into 4-1-5 with Valverde, Camavinga and Bellingham all getting forward. That is how Real have been hurting teams all season long and they should have significant joy against Dortmund if they can engineer plenty of counter-attacking situations.