Manchester City vs Borussia Dortmund: UEFA Champions League background, form guide, previous meetings

Manchester City, who have found the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals a difficult hurdle to overcome in recent years, take on Borussia Dortmund, a club appearing in the last eight for the first time since 2017.

• City are in the quarter-finals for the fourth successive season but their last three campaigns have all ended at this stage. Indeed, they have reached the semi-finals only once, in 2015/16; Dortmund, meanwhile, have lost their last two UEFA Champions League quarter-finals but overall have triumphed in the last eight three times out of six.

• However, while City are on a six-game winning run, home and away, against German clubs – including this season's round of 16 – Dortmund have lost their last five games against Premier League opponents.

Previous meetings
• The teams were paired together for the only previous time in the 2012/13 group stage, only City's second UEFA Champions League campaign, and it proved an unhappy one for the English club.

• A 90th-minute Mario Balotelli penalty did rescue a point for the English champions at the City of Manchester Stadium on Matchday 2, Marco Reus having given Dortmund the lead a minute past the hour, but Julian Schieber's 57th-minute goal proved enough for the German club to win the Matchday 6 fixture at the BVB Stadion Dortmund.

• Those results helped Jürgen Klopp's Dortmund finish first in Group D on 14 points, ahead of Real Madrid and Ajax. While BVB went on to reach the final, losing an all-German decider against Bayern München at Wembley, City under Roberto Mancini bowed out after finishing fourth in their section on three points and failing to win any of their six games.

• While Sergio Agüero is the sole City survivor from those two fixtures, having played 90 minutes at home before coming on as a substitute in Germany, Reus and Mats Hummels played both games while Łukasz Piszczek featured in Manchester and was an unused substitute in Dortmund. İlkay Gündoğan, now of City, started both games for Dortmund.

Form guide
Manchester City
• City's record in European Cup quarter-finals is W1 L3:
2019/20 Lyon L 1-3
2018/19 Tottenham L 4-4 away goals (0-1 a, 4-3 h)
2017/18 Liverpool L 1-5 (0-3 a, 1-2 h)
2015/16 Paris Saint-Germain W 3-2 (2-2 a, 1-0 h)

• City scored three goals in each of their first three Group C victories this season, beating Porto (3-1), Marseille and Olympiacos (both 3-0) before a 1-0 win in Greece on Matchday 4 secured progress. A goalless draw in Porto in their penultimate fixture confirmed City in first place before a closing 2-0 win at home to Marseille.

• Josep Guardiola's side then beat Dortmund's domestic rivals Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-0 twice in the round of 16, with both games played in Budapest.

• It is 706 minutes since City conceded a UEFA Champions League goal, Luis Díaz's 14th-minute opener for Porto on Matchday 1. The record for the competition, set by Arsenal in 2005/06, is 995 minutes, with City now second in the all-time rankings having moved above Juventus (690 minutes).

• City finished second in the 2019/20 Premier League and bowed out of the UEFA Champions League at the quarter-final stage for the third season running, going down 3-1 against Lyon in their one-off tie in Lisbon. They had finished first in their group with 14 points (W4 D2) before seeing off Real Madrid in the last 16, winning 2-1 away and at home against the 13-time European champions.

• This is the Cityzens' tenth UEFA Champions League campaign; they have been involved every season since 2011/12.

• City have scored 52 goals in their last 21 UEFA Champions League matches; over the last three seasons their record is W20 D4 L3 with 68 goals scored and 22 conceded.

• Guardiola's team are unbeaten in 12 home European matches (W11 D1) since a 2-1 loss against Lyon on Matchday 1 in 2018/19.

• City have won their last four home matches in the UEFA Champions League knockout phase – and five of the last seven (L2) – but overall have won only six of their 12 home knockout matches in the competition (D2 L4).

• That aggregate win against Mönchengladbach made City's record in two-legged ties against German clubs W3 L2. The two previous wins both came against Schalke, in the 2018/19 round of 16 and in the semi-finals of their victorious European Cup Winners' Cup campaign in 1969/70; they lost in the UEFA Cup quarter-finals to Mönchengladbach in 1978/79 and Hamburg 30 years later.

• The second leg against Mönchengladbach this season was the Cityzens' sixth successive home victory against Bundesliga teams; a 3-1 defeat by Bayern in 2013 is their sole loss to German opposition in Manchester (W8 D2).

• A 1-1 draw in Mönchengladbach in November 2016 is the only one of City's last 11 matches against German clubs they have failed to win, stretching back to a 1-0 loss at Bayern in September 2014.

Dortmund
• Dortmund's record in European Cup quarter-finals is W4 L4:
2016/17 Monaco L 3-6 (2-3 h, 1-3 a)
2013/14 Real Madrid L 2-3 (0-3 a, 2-0 h)
2012/13 Málaga W 3-2 (0-0 a, 3-2 h)
1997/98 Bayern München W 1-0 (0-0 a, 1-0 h aet)
1996/97 Auxerre W 4-1 (3-1 h, 1-0 a)
1995/96 Ajax L 0-3 (0-2 h, 0-1 a)
1963/64 Dukla Praha W 5-3 (4-0 a, 1-3 h)
1957/58 AC Milan L 2-5 (1-1 h, 1-4 a)

• The German club responded to an opening 3-1 loss at Lazio this season by beating Zenit 2-0 at home before defeating Club Brugge 3-0 both in Belgium and in Germany. A 1-1 draw at home to Lazio on Matchday 5 confirmed their last-16 place before a 2-1 closing win at Zenit clinched top spot in Group F.

• Sevilla were then beaten 3-2 away before a 2-2 home draw, Erling Haaland scoring twice in both games.

• Haaland, who has found the net in all six of his 2020/21 UEFA Champions League appearances having sat out Matchdays 5 and 6, is the leading scorer in this season's competition with ten goals.

• Second in the Bundesliga behind Bayern for the second season running in 2019/20, this is Dortmund's 15th UEFA Champions League campaign; they were winners in 1997, and runners-up in 2013. BVB have now reached the quarter-finals in four of their last eight participations.

• Under Lucien Favre, who left the club in December 2020 and has been replaced by Edin Terzić until the end of 2020/21, Dortmund were second behind Barcelona in their section last season. They picked up ten points – seven of them at home – to finish ahead of Internazionale and Slavia Praha. BVB were 2-1 winners at home to Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 first leg but bowed out after going down 2-0 in the return in France.

• Dortmund have won only three of their last 12 knockout phase matches in UEFA competition (D3 L6), the first two victories in that sequence coming at home – 3-2 against Atalanta in the 2017/18 UEFA Europa League round of 32 first leg and last season's first-leg defeat of Paris – before the win in Seville this season.

• BVB have won nine of their last 15 European matches (D2 L4), all four defeats coming away from home.

• The win at Sevilla was only Dortmund's sixth victory in their last 20 European away matches (D4 L10), although all of those wins have come in their last 12 (L6).

• BVB were beaten away (0-3) and at home (0-1) by Tottenham in the 2018/19 round of 16, their last fixtures against an English club. That made their record in two-legged knockout ties against English clubs W3 L3; they have lost the last two.

• The German club have lost their last five games against English clubs and have not beaten Premier League opposition since a 2-1 victory at Tottenham in the 2015/16 UEFA Europa League round of 16 second leg; their record since is D1 L5.

• Dortmund have lost on four of their last five trips to England and eight of their 13 games away to English clubs overall (W4 D1).

Links and trivia
• Gündoğan was a Dortmund player between 2011 and joining City in 2016, scoring 15 goals in 157 appearances in all competitions. He was part of the team that won a German league and cup double in 2011/12 and scored Dortmund's goal from the penalty spot in the 2-1 defeat by Bayern in the following season's UEFA Champions League final at Wembley.

• Gündoğan also played for Bochum (2005–09) and Nürnberg (2009–11) in Germany. His record against Dortmund with Nürnberg was played four, lost four.

• Jadon Sancho joined Manchester City from Watford in March 2015 at the age of 14. He spent the next two seasons in the club's academy sides before signing for Dortmund in August 2017.

• Have also played in England:
Felix Passlack (Norwich 2018/19 loan)
Emre Can (Liverpool 2014–18)
Jude Bellingham (Birmingham 2010–20)

• Have also played in Germany:
Kevin De Bruyne (Werder Bremen 2012/13 loan, Wolfsburg 2014–15)
Zack Steffen (Freiburg 2014–16, Fortuna Düsseldorf 2019/20 loan)

• International team-mates:
İlkay Gündoğan & Emre Can, Marco Reus, Marcel Schmelzer, Mahmoud Dahoud, Julian Brandt, Nico Schulz (Germany)
Rúben Dias, João Cancelo, Bernardo Silva & Raphaël Guerreiro (Portugal)
Kevin De Bruyne & Thomas Meunier, Thorgan Hazard (Belgium)
Kyle Walker, Phil Foden, John Stones, Raheem Sterling & Jadon Sancho, Jude Bellingham (England)
Zack Steffen & Giovanni Reyna (United States)

Alf-Inge Håland in action for City in 2000Getty Images

• Have played together:
İlkay Gündoğan & Mats Hummels, Marcel Schmelzer, Łukasz Piszczek (Dortmund 2011–16)
İlkay Gündoğan & Marco Reus (Dortmund 2012–16)
İlkay Gündoğan & Roman Bürki (Dortmund 2015/16)
João Cancelo & Emre Can (Juventus 2018/19)
Raheem Sterling & Emre Can (Liverpool 2014/15)

• Bernardo Silva played both legs as Monaco beat Dortmund in the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, winning 3-2 in Germany and 3-1 in France, where Benjamin Mendy also featured for 90 minutes.

• Mahmoud Dahoud played four times against City in the group stage of the 2015/16 and 2016/17 UEFA Champions League, his Mönchengladbach side suffering three defeats and drawing the other game.

• De Bruyne scored in Wolfsburg's 3-1 win against Dortmund in the German Cup final on 30 May 2015, having also scored away against them in a 2-2 Bundesliga draw on 17 December 2014.

Latest news
Manchester City
• Bernardo Silva made his 50th appearance in the UEFA Champions League, group stage to final, in the round of 16 second leg against Mönchengladbach.

• City have won their last five games in all competitions, scoring 14 goals and conceding two; they have kept four successive clean sheets, winning 2-0 at Leicester on Saturday.

• Benjamin Mendy opened the scoring at Leicester, his second goal in his last six Premier League appearances; he failed to score in his first 39 games.

• City's 21-match winning run in all competitions had been ended by a 2-0 home derby defeat against Manchester United on 7 March. Bruno Fernandes opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 101 seconds, the earliest Premier League goal City have conceded at the City of Manchester Stadium.

• That was also the first time City had trailed in 20 Premier League fixtures, and the only one of their last 27 games in all competitions they did not win.

• The loss against United is also the Cityzens' only defeat in 34 games in all competitions (W30 D3), since a 2-0 Premier League reverse at Tottenham on 21 November.

• City have kept more clean sheets (28) and conceded fewer goals (26) in all competitions this season than any other side in Europe's top five leagues.

• Defeat by United was City's second at home this season in all competitions and a first since a 5-2 Premier League loss to Leicester on 27 September; their home record otherwise is W18 D2. They had won nine in a row before losing to United.

• Sergio Agüero has started only five Premier League games this season because of knee and hamstring problems. His goal in a 3-0 win at Fulham on 13 March was his first in the league since 21 January 2020.

• On 29 March it was confirmed Agüero will leave City when his contract expires this summer. The Argentinian, who joined in 2011, is the club's record goalscorer with 257 goals in 385 appearances.

• John Stones scored only once in his first 170 Premier League appearances for Everton and City, but now has four goals in his last ten.

• City have won their last 15 away games in all competitions, surpassing the previous record for an English top-flight team of 11 they set themselves between May and November 2017.

• İlkay Gündoğan has scored ten goals in 14 Premier League appearances in 2021 and has found the net in three of his last four City appearances in all competitions, including the last two; he did not feature at the weekend.

• Guardiola's side were 2-0 winners at Everton in the FA Cup quarter-finals on 20 March and will face Chelsea in the last four at Wembley on 17 April.

• City have also reached the English League Cup final for the fourth year in a row – and the sixth time in eight seasons. Having won the trophy three years running, they will play Tottenham at Wembley on 25 April.

• On 25 March Raheem Sterling captained England to a 5-0 win against San Marino in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying, marking the occasion with his 14th international goal. The same day, Gündoğan found the net as Germany won 3-0 at home to Iceland.

• Kevin De Bruyne set up Belgium's goal in a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic and Bernardo Silva provided an assist as Portugal drew 2-2 with Serbia, both on 27 March. De Bruyne had also scored in a 3-1 win against Wales on 24 March.

• Ferran Torres scored Spain's equaliser in a 2-1 comeback win away to Georgia on 28 March.

• Riyad Mahrez captained Algeria in the final game of their successful CAF Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign on 30 March, scoring one goal, a penalty, and making another in a 5-0 win against Botswana.

• On 31 March Torres scored Spain's second goal in a 3-1 home win against Kosovo, making it six in ten internationals, while Oleksandr Zinchenko captained Ukraine in a 1-1 home draw against Kazakhstan and Gündoğan was Germany skipper– and goalscorer – in their 2-1 home defeat by North Macedonia, his side's first World Cup qualifying loss since 2001.

• Nathan Aké has not played since 26 December due to a hamstring injury; he was an unused substitute at Leicester.

• De Bruyne was included in the UEFA.com fans' Men's Team of the Year 2020.

Dortmund
• Julian Brandt's next appearance in UEFA club competition will be his 50th.

• BVB lost 2-1 at home to Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday, making it one win in their last five matches in all competitions (D2 L2).

• Dortmund have already suffered ten defeats in their 27 Bundesliga matches this season, three more than in the whole of 2019/20.

• Four days after the second leg against Sevilla, Dortmund won 2-0 at home to Hertha Berlin before a 2-2 draw in Köln a week later.

• Erling Haaland scored both goals in Köln, and now has 34 goals in 37 league appearances for Dortmund. The striker became the first Bundesliga player to score 25 goals in his first 25 matches when he was on target twice in a 3-1 win in Leipzig on 9 January.

• Dortmund will play against 2. Bundesliga side Kiel in the semi-finals of the German Cup on 1 May.

• On 24 March Thorgan Hazard scored for Belgium in a 3-1 win against Wales in qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

• Four days later Giovanni Reyna was on target for the USA in a 2-1 friendly win in Northern Ireland.

• Youssoufa Moukoko missed all three of Germany's group games at the 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship because of a shin problem and also sat out Dortmund's weekend defeat.

• Raphaël Guerreiro made his first appearance since 2 March on Saturday having recovered from a calf injury. Marco Reus missed the Köln game with a foot injury but played 80 minutes on Saturday while Mateu Morey, who was sidelined for the Köln draw with muscular problems, was an unused substitute against Eintracht.

• On 25 March Dortmund announced that Dan-Axel Zagadou will be out for the rest of the season following knee surgery.

• Jadon Sancho has not played since 2 March because of a thigh injury.

• Axel Witsel is facing a long spell on the sidelines after rupturing his left Achilles tendon in that win at Leipzig in January. He has been removed from Dortmund's UEFA Champions League squad, while Marcel Schmelzer, who underwent knee surgery in July, was also left out.