Club Brugge KV vs Dortmund Prediction: 18/9/2024

Club Brugge KV has become a familiar presence in the Champions League in recent seasons, securing qualification for the group stage, now the league stage, seven times since 2017. As the 2024 Belgian champions, they gained direct entry into the Champions League without needing to go through qualifiers. However, their domestic league campaign has started slowly, with 3 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses in their first 6 matches, leaving them 3rd in the standings, but already 10 points behind the leaders.

On the other hand, Borussia Dortmund reached last season’s Champions League final, where they narrowly missed out on lifting the trophy. Key moments, such as Adeyemi’s first-half miss and Füllkrug’s shot hitting the post, will remain bitter memories for a BVB side that lost 1-0 due to a late goal.

Dortmund qualified for the Champions League by finishing 5th in the Bundesliga and began their new domestic campaign sitting in 4th place with 4 points after their first two matches. Their next Bundesliga fixture will be against Heidenheim.

This summer, Club Brugge saw the departure of two key players: Igor Thiago (sold to Brentford for €33 million) and Antonio Nusa (to RB Salzburg for €21 million), with Roman Yaremchuk also leaving for Olympiakos. In response, they brought in players such as Tzolis (€6 million, Fortuna), Gustaf Nilsson (€6 million, USG), Ardon Jashari (€6 million, FC Lucerne), and Zaid Romero (€6 million, Club Estudiantes). However, they will be without important players like left-back Bjorn Meijer, rotation right-back Sabbe, and Casper Nielsen, who has been sidelined since Matchday 2.

For Dortmund, this summer marked a turning point, with the club saying farewell to long-time defender Mats Hummels (on a free transfer) and legendary captain Marco Reus (who joined LA Galaxy). Forward Füllkrug (12 goals, 8 assists last season) moved to the Premier League with West Ham. Dortmund made some key signings, including defender Waldemar Anton (Stuttgart) and forward Serhou Guirassy (Stuttgart), who scored 28 goals last season. Max Beier (Hoffenheim, 16 goals in the Bundesliga) also joined. Notably, Wajten and Guirassy missed the last Bundesliga match, and Brazilian Yan Couto is injured. Giovanni Reyna may not be fully fit, but Nico Schlotterbeck returns after serving a suspension.

 

Prediction

While Club Brugge KV has been prolific in the Champions League this season, averaging 3.5 goals per game, only two of their last 15 matches have featured four or more goals. With Dortmund having played 45 consecutive top-flight away matches with under 3.5 goals, it seems unlikely that this trend will change even against a high-scoring opponent like Brugge.

Prediction: Club Brugge KV 1 : 1 Borussia Dortmund