The last season Borussia Dortmund had such problems in the Bundesliga was over a decade ago and BVB have just 12 rounds to right their wrongs and try to finish in the Top 6. On the other end, Union Berlin need to win a few more points until the end of the campaign to secure their place in the league for another season.
Niko Kovac took over Borussia in their toughest period in years and while their results have improved partially, the problems are still evident. The main positive at the moment is that BVB beat Sporting CP and qualified for the next stage of the Champions League. The bad thing is that if they don't start winning in the Bundesliga, their only chance to make it to the CL next year will be winning the CL this season.
While that's not impossible, Dortmund don't look nearly as dangerous as they did a year ago when they reached the final and lost to Real Madrid. It is imperative that they win their next few domestic games. They can focus all their efforts on that goal now because there are two whole weeks until the next phase of the Champions League. But shockingly, Dortmund have not won at home in the Bundesliga in five matches in a row.
Home fans are entitled to some positivity ahead of this game because Union Berlin are among the weakest away sides in the league. In fact, they have the same record as Dortmund away from home – two wins, two draws, and seven losses. Six of those seven losses came in their last seven away games. The hosts won't get a better opportunity to get back to winning ways than in this fixture.
How the bookies view it: Rare high odds in a Borussia home game
It feels strange seeing such high odds for the home side, but bookmakers have taken their poor form into account. This is an opportunity for bigger profits, as you can pick Dortmund at 11/20. The draw is priced at 7/2 and the win for Union Berlin at 9/2.
Recent head to head: The home side always wins
Union Berlin have had a couple of good seasons in recent years, but they never managed to beat Dortmund away from home. All in all, historically they have seven out of seven losses at Signal Iduna Park. The fact is, however, that Union won the reverse fixture earlier in the season, beating Dortmund 2-1.
Players to watch: Brandt can always make the difference
Julian Brandt continues to raise his ratings, having been involved in five of Dortmund's last 11 goals. The German is a guaranteed starter when he's not injured and we expect him to be at the heart of the action once again. It should also be noted that he provided the assist for Ryerson's goal in the reverse fixture earlier this season. In the last campaign, he scored against Union in the same fixture when Dortmund won 4-2.
Probable line-ups
Borussia Dortmund: Kobel, Svensson, Can, Schlotterbeck, Ryerson, Gross, Gittens, Brandt, Sabitzer, Adeyemi, Guirassy
Union Berlin: Ronnow, Juranovic, Doekhi, Leite, Rothe, Tousart, Khedira, Jeong, Hollerbach, Skarke, Ilic
Anything else catch the eye?
Borussia Dortmund played a relatively boring game against Sporting during the week, failing to score a single goal. And last weekend, they failed to score against Bochum in the tough away game they lost 2-0. We think that the situation will be completely different here and BVB will take out their accumulated negative emotions on Union Berlin.
The matches between the two teams rarely end with less than three goals. Seven of the last 10 H2Hs ended with at least three, as have four of the five times Dortmund were the hosts. Meanwhile, Union Berlin have had serious problems on the road this season, conceding at least two goals in seven of their last eight away fixtures.
This German Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and Union Berlin will be played on Feb 22, 2025 and kick off at 17:30. Check below for our tipsters best Borussia Dortmund vs Union Berlin prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
