Both clubs enter the start of the Champions League in high spirits, having secured high-scoring victories in their last domestic league matches and showing strong form.
Club Brugge once again tops the Jupiler League. Following another championship, the Flemish club cashed in well by selling Brazilian forward Igor Thiago to Brentford for €33 million and Norwegian Antonio Nusa to RB Leipzig for €21 million. Initially, this impacted their performance, resulting in a draw and two losses at the start of the season, but they have since found their rhythm, securing four consecutive wins. During this winning streak, newcomer Gustaf Nilsson has stood out, contributing 2+3. Nilsson was acquired from their rival Union Saint-Gilloise for €6.4 million.
Under their new head coach, Borussia Dortmund immediately entered the race for the Bundesliga title alongside Bayern Munich. They stumbled in Bremen, where Werder held them to a goalless draw, although neither side generated significant xG (0.35-0.63). A positive takeaway for Dortmund is that they have kept clean sheets in two consecutive matches. In the last league match, they couldn't maintain a clean sheet but still outperformed offensively, defeating Heidenheim 1846 4-2. Notably, they required only 2.69 xG and 13 (6 on target) shots to score four goals.
The clubs last met in the group stages of the Champions League in 2018 and 2020. In those four matches, Brugge failed to score even once and suffered heavy defeats both at home and away. This time around, the German side is also in good form, particularly in defence, so we are betting on Borussia Dortmund to win.
