Nuri Sahin smiled and spoke with humor about a possible lightning comeback by his injured defense chief Nico Schlotterbeck. “The coach always has remaining hope until kick-off,” said the Borussia Dortmund coach. “I also hope that Niki Süle will call me tomorrow and say that he can play – which is very unlikely to happen.” Sahin added with a smile: “The remaining hope is there for everyone – to publicly build pressure on the boys here too .”
Realistically, Sahin will definitely have to do without his central defenders Süle and Waldemar Anton on Sunday against TSG Hoffenheim (5.30 p.m./Dazn). Schlotterbeck will also most likely be out with the ligament injury he suffered in the 2-3 Champions League win against FC Barcelona on Wednesday – everyone thought. But he plays! The injury problems in the BVB defense are so great that there is even speculation that Mats Hummels will return.
Bad luck with injuries at BVB: Beier and Brandt are also questionable
Sahin wanted to decide relatively spontaneously who would play alongside captain Emre Can in central defense in the event of Schlotterbeck's failure. “There are a few variations. We have our final training tomorrow and then we will decide on who will start alongside Emre,” he said on Friday. The most likely option in the event of a Scdhlotterbeck failure was for left-back Ramy Bensebaini to move into the center.
Maximilian Beier and Julian Brandt are also questionable on offense. It is also unclear whether full-back Julian Ryerson can play. The 27-year-old was substituted against Barcelona with circulatory problems.
