Preview: Fortuna Dusseldorf vs. Borussia Dortmund - predictions, team news, lineups

Two Bundesliga clubs needing three points for entirely different reasons will meet on Saturday as Fortuna Dusseldorf play host to Borussia Dortmund at the Merkur Spielarena.

The sides are separated by a whopping 35 points in the table after 30 games, with Dusseldorf sitting in 16th while Dortmund lie in second as things stand.

Match preview

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Dusseldorf are firmly embroiled in a relegation dogfight at this late stage of the campaign, and their fight for survival was dealt a heavy blow last weekend as 15th-placed Mainz 05 recorded a crucial victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Uwe Rosler 's side now lie three points adrift of safety after 30 games and had Rouwen Hennings to thank last weekend as the German's brace rescued a point for Dusseldorf against Hoffenheim.

Hennings has now reached an impressive total of 14 Bundesliga goals for the season - a tally only surpassed by Robert Lewandowski, Timo Werner and Jadon Sancho.

Werder Bremen's loss to Wolfsburg last weekend means that Dusseldorf are three points clear of an automatic relegation to the second division, but Rosler's side are not out of the woods just yet as they occupy the relegation playoff spot with four gameweeks left.

Dusseldorf have managed to string together a four-game unbeaten league run on home soil, but they have only triumphed once at the Merkur Spielarena since the turn of the year - a 2-1 victory over Schalke in May.

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In contrast, Dortmund have recovered from their defeat against title rivals Bayern Munich with back-to-back victories over Paderborn and Hertha Berlin respectively.

Emre Can deputised in the heart of defence as Mats Hummels served a one-match suspension last Saturday, and the former Liverpool man struck the only goal of the game against Hertha to keep Dortmund's slim hopes of Bundesliga glory alive.

However, Lucien Favre 's side will need nothing short of a miracle to pip Bayern to the title as they remain seven points behind the Bavarian giants who are showing no signs of complacency.

This is a tie that Dortmund will be confident of winning, though, as they have picked up victories in five of their last six on the road - notching up 20 goals in the process.

Dusseldorf were subjected to a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of their opponents back in December, but Rosler's side did manage to record a 2-1 victory against BVB on home turf last season.

Dusseldorf Bundesliga form: DDDWLD

Borussia Dortmund Bundesliga form: WWWLWW

Borussia Dortmund form (all competitions): LWWLWW

Team News

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Long-term absentee Zack Steffen remains sidelined for Dusseldorf, while Marcel Sobottka and Bernard Tekpetey are also doubtful.

Adam Bodzek is suspended after picking up his 10th yellow card of the season last weekend, and Rosler may opt to switch to a back four as Dusseldorf prepare for a challenging afternoon.

Hummels will almost certainly slot back in to the Dortmund defence as the German returns from suspension, meaning that last week's match-winner Can will likely make way.

Erling Braut Haaland is also facing a race to be fit after missing the last two games with a knee injury, but the forward has returned to training and could play a part here.

Marco Reus is also making good progress with his recovery but will not feature for this one, and Nico Schulz, Dan-Axel Zagadou and Mahmoud Dahoud all remain out for Favre's side.

Should Haaland make the first XI for this tie, the forward could be supported by Sancho and Julian Brandt in attack with Thorgan Hazard dropping to the bench.

Dusseldorf possible starting lineup:

Kastenmeier; Zimmermann, Ayhan, Hoffmann, Giesselmann; Morales; Skrzybski, Stoger, Berisha, Thommy; Hennings

Dortmund possible starting lineup:

Burki; Akanji, Hummels, Piszczek; Hakimi, Witsel, Delaney, Guerreiro; Sancho, Brandt; Haaland

We say: Fortuna Dusseldorf 0-3 Borussia Dortmund

Dusseldorf are in a desperate situation at the foot of the table and will no doubt be hopeful of causing an upset this weekend, but Dortmund have swept aside almost everything before them recently and we cannot see any other result than a comfortable away victory.