Madrid v Dortmund: line-ups, where to watch, form guide
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
Article summary
Zinédine Zidane called his players "experienced but still hungry", exhorting Madrid to beat Dortmund and win Group F in what will be his 50th match in charge.
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Article body
- Zidane's 50th game as Madrid coach; "we want to finish top of the group," he says
- Both teams already qualified; Madrid need to win to pip Dortmund to top spot
- Dortmund one goal shy of UEFA Champions League group stage record
- Madrid unbeaten in five previous encounters with Dortmund in Spain
- Dortmund press conference scheduled for 18:00CET
Possible line-ups
Madrid: Navas; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo; Kovačić, Casemiro, Modrić; Vázquez, Benzema, Ronaldo.
Out: Bale (ankle), Coentrão (omitted), Mariano Díaz (omitted), Nacho (omitted)
Dortmund: Weidenfeller; Ginter, Papastathopoulos, Bartra; Piszczek, Schmelzer; Weigl, Castro; Dembélé, Reus; Aubameyang.
Out: Götze (knee), Bürki (hand), Guerreiro (muscle strain), Subotić (knee), Kagawa (ankle), S Bender (fitness), Nuri Şahin (knee)
Doubt: Reus (ill)
Misses next match if booked: Guerreiro
Where to watch
Fans can find their local UEFA Champions League broadcast partner(s) here.
Zinédine Zidane, Madrid coach
We're going into the game looking for a win. We're preparing everything as best we can. We want to have the right mentality and intensity, and we'll look for a quick, early goal. You have to highlight the whole team's work. Every player is very professional, all working very hard – experienced but still hungry.
They've won a lot but they still want to win more and more, and this is good for me. It's a final. We're only thinking about winning. We want to finish top of the group.
Thomas Tuchel, Dortmund coach
The important thing about finishing first in the group is to prove you deserve to be first. The confidence from winning or drawing here, with this atmosphere ... that is the value of winning this group. It is not an advantage for the next round from my point of view, more a reflection of our growth.
When you focus solely on the result many unforeseen things can happen. We know how things are when you play with no pressure. We know we can play to win, to draw, even to lose and still go through to the next round. It will be a good match to gauge our level, to keep on growing and improving.
Weekend results
Barcelona 1-1 Real Madrid (Suárez 53; Ramos 90)
It is now 33 games unbeaten in all competitions for Madrid thanks to captain Sergio Ramos's third Liga effort of the campaign.
Dortmund 4-1 Mönchengladbach (Aubameyang 7 68, Piszczek 15, Dembélé 64; Raffael 6)
Having lost for the first time in ten games last weekend, Dortmund bounced back with the help of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's seventh and eighth goals in his last five outings.
Form guide
Madrid: DWWWWW
Dortmund: WLWWWW
Reporter's view: Joe Walker (@UEFAcomJoeW)
The Merengues know exactly what they have to do in order to secure top spot in Group F: beat Borussia Dortmund. Anything else will mean they risk an on-paper tougher draw in the last 16 as runners-up, and a club like Real Madrid will always want to be maximising their chances. They also have an added incentive. Should they avoid defeat by the German outfit, they will equal the club record of 34 games unbeaten.
Did you know?
Madrid are undefeated in five previous encounters with Dortmund in Spain. Read more in our extensive match background.