PSV Eindhoven vs Borussia Dortmund. Prediction and Preview. Probable Lineups, Team News, Stats, and more

PSV Eindhoven will host Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 match at the Phillips Stadium. The fixture will take place on Wednesday, February 21, beginning at 01:30 IST.

Parimatch News will tell you everything you need to know ahead of the upcoming match.

PSV Eindhoven News & Current Form: 

PSV are the current vice-champions of the Netherlands, who are clearly ready to get rid of the prefix “vice” at the end of the current season. Twelve rounds before the finish of the national championship, the Red and Whites are leading in the standings, ahead of the nearest pursuer by ten points.  

In the current Eredivisie campaign leaders are stamping victories one after another, having collected 62 points out of a possible 66 after 22 rounds – an amazing performance. Last Friday, PSV beat Heracles Almelo 2:0 at home – goals were scored by Luuk de Jong and Olivier Boscagli. It is important to note that the Striped Ones  have a winning streak of four home victories, with only 2 goals conceded during this time. 

One point is striking. After the recent almost month-long break, PSV managed to play two ranked clubs in their country and did not win a single game. On the 17th of January, the Red and Whites visited Feyenoord in the 1/8 finals of the KNVB Cup and lost 0:1. According to xG the defeat was deserved – 0.99-1.22. The opponent scored a goal on 31 minutes and competently played from defense. 

On the 3rd of February PSV visited AFC Ajax in the framework of the championship. The meeting ended in a fair draw (1:1). And in this match a strong opponent paid a lot of attention to tight defense in the middle zone.

The club shows a powerful game in attack (82 goals in all competitions). No one from the top 5 European championships has scored more. The Dutch play confidently on their own field (they have not lost at home in the Champions League 5 matches in a row), besides, they had an extra day of rest. However, this advantage can be broken by the pragmatism of the Germans, with which they surprised in the group stage. 

Usually a new coach needs time to adapt to the club, but Peter Bosz rushed in without warming up. PSV have produced 17 consecutive wins since the start of the championship, still undefeated with a gap of 13 points from 2nd place.

Peter Bosz – coach who completely changed PSV Eindhoven since his arrival

Under Bosz’s leadership, the club has become a pressing machine. The team has the best PPDA (pressing intensity) in the Dutch league at a 9.9. We have to take into account that this is even lower than last season (11.7). The hyper-aggressive style of play works wonders. The Dutch have a 5-match unbeaten streak in the Champions League, are in the top 5 in shots (15.8 per match on average) and 4th in key passes (13 on average).

PSV managed to snatch second place in the Champions League Quartet B standings behind Arsenal FC. In six matches of the group round, the Dutch club scored nine points out of 18 after two wins, three draws and one defeat. 

The team from Eindhoven succeeded in a double-header against RC Lens (1:1 away and 1:0 at home), and in the final round triumphed over the Gunners (1:1 at home). Thus, the capital club returned to the Champions League playoffs eight years after the previous appearance here. 

Hirving Lozano, suspended for yellow carding in the final group stage game against London club, is expected to return to the squad on Tuesday night, while Armel Bella Kotchap and Noa Lang (4 goals) remain injured. 

Peter Bosz has an ultra-competitive squad at his disposal, including captain Luuk de Jong (18 goals, 8 assists in the Eredivisie). It is de Jong who has had the biggest impact on the team’s play under Bosz. The Dutchman is the best in the team in touches in the penalty area (189), shots on goal (35) and goals scored (21).

Guus Til (7 goals, 3 assists), young Moroccan Ismael Saibari (5 goals, 4 assists in the Eredivisie) and Belgian Johan Bakayoko (4 goals, 8 assists in the Eredivisie) will also appear in the starting lineup, while Joey Veerman (3 goals, 9 assists) and Malik Tillman (5 goals, 3 assists) will be responsible for reliability in the center of defense. 

Don`t miss out 👉: Twin centuries from Rohit and Jadeja keep India in good stead at the end of Day 1 of the 3rd Test

Borussia Dortmund News & Current Form: 

For Borussia, the current season is turning out to be very ordinary. A year earlier, it was the Bees who fought with FC Bayern Munich for the Bundesliga title, but in the final round they sensationally lost points, letting the Munich side to their 11th consecutive title. 

In the current championship wards of Edin Terzic began to lose points from the very first rounds, because of which they now have to fight only to maintain their position in the top-4. After the winter break Borussia scored 14 points in 6 games (only Bayer have more – 16). The team is the best in the Bundesliga in this stretch in terms of efficiency (14) and goals conceded (2).

BVB are only fourth in the overall standings, 15 points behind Bayer 04 Leverkusen. However, since the beginning of the calendar year, the form of the Bees has improved somewhat: they have not conceded in the last six rounds of the Bundesliga, beating SV Darmstadt 98 (0:3), FC Cologne (0:3), VfL Bochum 1848 (3:1) and SC Freiburg two weeks ago (3:0). 

In the last round, the Black and Yellows could not hold on for a win against VfL Wolfsburg, although they scored in the 8th minute of the match. The Wolves came back in the second half and the match ended with the score 1:1. 

Borussia managed to take the first place in the quartet of death: the yellow-blacks had to compete with PSG, AC Milan and Newcastle United FC. In the final round of the group stage against the Parisians, Dortmund needed just one point to finish as leaders, and Edin Terzic’s charges achieved the needed result (1:1).

It is all the more surprising that the visitors started the main continental championship poorly: a 2:0 defeat at Parc de Prins and a 0:0 draw at home to Milan. Then followed two victories over the Magpies (0:1 and 2:0) and a crucial win at the San Siro (1:3).

In general, the team demonstrates a solid playing form – this is evidenced by the statistics of the top scorers and assistants of the team. Thus, Niclas Füllkrug is leading the list of the most scoring players of the team – 12 goals, but 3 on penalties, in 27 games. On the second line is Donyell Malen with 10 goals in 28 meetings, and the third place is occupied by Julian Brandt with 8 goals in 28 games. Perennial leader and team captain Marco Reus is an important link in Borussia’s game scheme. The midfielder has scored six goals in 26 games.

Karim Adeyemi of Borussia Dortmund is still injured and will miss the upcoming UCL clash

A year earlier, such pragmatic football nearly led them to the Bundesliga championship, and now has allowed them to top a tough group. It is noteworthy that in six European Cup matches, the Black-and-Yellows have scored and conceded a total of 11 goals (1.83 per game on average). 

Experienced Emre Can will return to the German team after suspension, while Karim Adeyemi, Julien Duranville and Felix Nmecha are still injured. Ivorian CAF African Cup of Nations winner Sebastien Haller (11 Bundesliga appearances this season) will compete for the center-forward spot with Fullkrug. 

Edin Terzic caught the syndrome of the 2nd season – the team is playing unevenly, and the coach still can’t find a replacement for the best eight of the world Jude Bellingham. But the return of Jadon Sancho, who climbed out of the Manchester United FC crisis in the winter transfer window and is the best passer in 5 matches, will help to fix the situation. He gives a progressive pass every 15.5 minutes and makes a progressive burst every 9 minutes. 

PSV Eindhoven form guide: D-L-W-D-W-W

Borussia Dortmund form guide: W-W-W-D-W-D

PSV Eindhoven vs Borussia Dortmund Head-To-Head Record:

• January 7, 2017: PSV Eindhoven 1 – 4 Borussia Dortmund (International Club Friendly).

PSV Eindhoven vs Borussia Dortmund Predicted XI:

PSV Eindhoven’s possible starting lineup (4-3-3): Benitez; Teze, Boscagli, Ramalho, Dest; Saibari, Schouten, Veerman; Bakayoko, De Jong, Lozano.

Borussia Dortmund’s possible starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Kobel; Ryerson, Sule, Schlotterbeck, Maatsen; Can, Sabitzer; Brandt, Reus, Sancho; Fullkrug.

Statistical preview of the match PSV Eindhoven vs Borussia Dortmund:

• Eindhoven’s First XI average age is 26.9 years, Borussia’s First XI average age is 27.7 years.
• The total value of PSV’s squad is 282 mln euros, while the total of Dortmund comes up to 464 mln euros.
• Srdjan Jovanovic has been appointed as the center referee. The referee has already served 5 games this season, showing an average of 5 Yellow Cards and also whistles 20 fouls per game. 
• PSV have won 3 of their last 4 matches in the Eredivisie.
• PSV have not lost an official game this season at the Phillips Stadium.
• Borussia Dortmund have not lost in the last 9 meetings in all competitions.
• Borussia Dortmund have scored at least 3 goals in 4 of their last 6 Bundesliga matches.

What has been said before the match:

Gaffer of PSV Eindhoven Peter Bosz ahead of UEFA Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund:

“It is an opponent that I have a lot of respect for, That’s precisely why I really want to beat them. We know where we can hurt them and what we have to be careful of. Fortunately, we have already gained experience against opponents of this level in the group phase.”

“The away game against Arsenal was very important afterwards. We were able to compete against one of the best teams in the world. We learned a lot from that.” 

“Borussia also have good positional play. How they play will therefore also depend on us. It is important that we dare to play football. That is the key to ultimately winning the match.”

“I’ve thought a lot about it: how should we approach it and how am I going to convey it to the team. I’m not nervous, I’m really looking forward to it.”

Edin Terzic about PSV and Luuk de Jong:

“The anticipation is great, of course we also have respect for PSV, they have great self-confidence. But we’re not here to enjoy this round of 16, we want to progress.”

“De Jong is their target player in the center, the wingers are very strong dribblers, play right-footed on the left and vice versa. They have problems at the back and have already conceded as many goals in the UCL as in the entire league season. We have to take advantage of that.”

PSV Eindhoven vs Borussia Dortmund Prediction:

Few expected PSV to make it to the Champions League 1/8 finals, but the Red and Whites were quite lucky with the draw. Lens, who finished second in the 22/23 Ligue 1 campaign (only 1 point behind PSG) are not as potent this season, with virtually no European Cup experience, Sevilla are still struggling, only title-contending Arsenal have caused trouble at the group stage. The Lightbulbs are having a fantastic 23/24 season, dominating the Eredivisie with a 10 point lead over the second place. The Dutch are on a good momentum: in 22 rounds Peter Bosz’s side have recorded 20 wins and two draws. The goal difference is incredible: 74 scored and 10 conceded.

Now the Dutch will face a Dortmund side that plays with mixed success in the Bundesliga: back in December, the Bumblebees were in crisis, having gone six games without a win in all competitions. But now Edin Terzic’s side are on a roll in the German league: four wins and two draws with a 14:2 goal difference. In the Champions League they have left PSG, Milan and Newcastle behind them, showing pragmatic and well-organized football, which is especially important for such important battles. BVB have been labeled as a carnival team that boldly goes in attack, scoring and conceding a lot. But under Edin Terzic, the Bumblebees are tending to play for the right result and are taking far fewer risks than before. A year ago, such a disciplined approach almost led them to the Bundesliga title, and now they finished first in the toughest UCL group. Remarkably, the Black-and-Yellows have scored and conceded a total of 11 goals in six Eurocup matches (average match total – 1.83). PSV, by the way, have only once scored more than 2.5 goals in their last six matches. 

Despite the fact that the teams have a good offensive line and fast players, we expect cautious anticipatory football from both teams. The forces are almost equal, and to take risks and go big in attack in the first leg of the ⅛ final, leaving space in the backline, is hardly favorable to any of the opponents. 

Parimatch News staff prediction:

We say: the match total will be less than 3.5 – Yes.

Don`t miss out 👉: Mohun Bagan Super Giant ends Goa’s invincible run with a 1-0 triumph