Dortmund haven't found the net in 200 minutes but their last goal was against Gladbach. In the continued absence of Paco Alcacer, coach Lucien Favre needs others to find their range as the Foals come to town again.
"Of course, the Bundesliga game against them has helped in our preparation for the match," said the Gladbach coach ahead of Wednesday's second round German Cup tie at the Westfalenstadion. "We lost 1-0 but we didn't play badly. In the match tomorrow we need to believe that we can win right up until the final whistle."
Since Dortmund beat the table-toppers on October 19 they've failed to score against Inter Milan and Schalke. More than that, they've rarely looked like creating much, with the absence of their only genuine number nine Paco Alcacer being keenly felt.
Favre feeling the heat
Lucien Favre has taken plenty of flak for the stuttering form that has seen BVB win just two matches (against Gladbach and Slavia Prague) since the middle of September and cast doubt on their ability to make the Champions League knockouts and a take a sustained tilt at the Bundesliga title.
Marco Reus scored the winner last time the sides metImage: Getty Images/Bongarts/D. Mouhtaropoulos
In that light, an early exit from the German Cup ahead of a home game with unbeaten Wolfsburg and the crunch rematch with Inter would surely cast serious doubts on the future of the former Gladbach boss. But the Swiss tactician reckons he's found a solution.
"We need to be quicker and to play with only one touch much more frequently to avoid the opponent's press. We need to make progress in that respect," he said at his pre-match press conference. "And we need to improve our finishing too."
In the absence of Alcacer, and with new signings Julian Brandt and Thorgan Hazard having mustered a single goal between them in over 1400 minutes for BVB, the load on Reus is even heavier than usual.
Favre at least has the option of Mario Götze, who will be able to play some part on Wednesday despite breaking a bone in his arm in the stalemate against Schalke. Roman Bürki is also in contention to feature as he continues his recovery from illness but Matthias Ginter, Breel Embolo, Raffael and Alassane Plea are all out for the visitors.
Foals in form
But in Marcus Thuram, Gladbach have a striker on a hot streak. In contrast to Brandt and Hazard, the Foals' summer signing has hit form after a slow start, with an effort in the 4-2 win over Frankfurt on Sunday making it four goals and two assists in his last five league games.
He's not the only one of Rose's charges in form. Midfielder Denis Zakaria is reportedly drawing admiring glances from some top Premier League clubs after a series of dominant displays and the Swiss international says spirits are high.
"We are in a good mood," the 22-year-old told the club's website. "In the DFB-Pokal, of course, we want to get through to the next round, so we will give our all in this game. In the end, we’ll have to see if it’s enough. It will be incredibly difficult for us."
It may always be tricky to travel to take on Dortmund, but now seems as good a time as any.
Bundesliga Matchday 9: In pictures
Robert Lewandowski made Bundesliga history, becoming the first player to score in the first nine Bundesliga games of a season. Also, Dortmund got a point in a poor Ruhr derby, Freiburg won again and Paderborn got a win.
Image: AFP/I. Fassbender
Borussia Mönchengladbach 4-2 Eintracht Frankfurt
Gladbach are back on top after beating Frankfurt in an absorbing final game of the weekend. The hosts raced into a 2-0 lead through Marcus Thuram and Oscar Wendt, but were pegged back through Danny da Costa. Gladbach restored their two-goal cushion via Nico Elvedi, who made it 3-1, but Martin Hinteregger's header kept the visitors in it. But Denis Zakaria sealed the win five minutes from time.
Image: AFP/I. Fassbender
Bayern Munich 2-1 Union Berlin
Robert Lewandowski made Bundesliga history against Union, becoming the first player ever to score in the first nine games of a season. He surpassed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's record of eight with the second goal in Bayern's victory over the Berliners after Benjamin Pavard's long range strike had broken the deadlock. Union grabbed a late consolation through Sebastian Polter but Bayern hung on.
Image: Getty Images/S. Widmann
Schalke 0-0 Borussia Dortmund
Dortmund produced another lacklustre performance but somehow escaped Gelsenkirchen with a point in the Revierderby. Schalke were the better side and twice hit the bar before the break; first Sane and then Serdar. Sancho was Dortmund's main threat but was twice foiled, and Thorgan Hazard was lucky not to concede a penalty when the ball struck his arm in the box.
Image: Imago Images/Kolvenbach
Freiburg 2-1 RB Leipzig
Freiburg maintained their superb start to the season with the scalp of Leipzig at the Schwarzwald stadium. The hosts took the lead through Nicolas Höfler's close-range finish. Nils Petersen doubled their advantage in stoppage time to secure the points, despite Lukas Klostermann's consolation at the death. It wasn't enough for Leipzig as Freiburg climb back up to second, just a point behind Bayern.
Image: Imago Images/Beautiful Sports/G. Gruendl
Hertha Berlin 2-3 Hoffenheim
Hoffenheim made it three wins from three, coming out on top of a five-goal thriller in Berlin. The visitors raced into a 2-0 lead courtesy of Jürgen Locadia and Anrej Kramaric, but let their lead slip as Hertha stormed back through Dodi Lukebakio and Salomon Kalou. But Hoffenheim weren't done and grabbed a winner through Benjamin Hübner, before Hertha's Vladimir Darida was sent off late on.
Image: Imago Images/Contrast/O. Behrendt
Paderborn 2-0 Fortuna Düsseldorf
Paderborn finally got their first victory of the season, picking up a deserved win over Düsseldorf. The opener came just before half time when Abdelhamid Sabiri struck, before Sebastian Schonlau secured the three points in the 64th minute. The victory still leaves them bottom of the table but is a much-needed confidence boost, with a crucial game against Augsburg on the horizon.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Gentsch
Bayer Leverkusen 2-2 Werder Bremen
Werder Bremen held Leverkusen to a 2-2 draw in an entertaining game at BayArena. An Omer Toprak own goal put the hosts ahead, but Bremen roared back in style. Milot Rashica continued his fine form with a fine strike to level and Davy Klaasen also found the net in style. But Leverkusen struck back through Lucas Alario to salvage a point.
Image: Getty Images/C. Koepsel
Mainz 3-1 Cologne
A Robin Quaison thunderbolt stole the show as Mainz came from behind to beat Cologne, who had taken the lead through Simon Terodde. Jean-Paul Boetius' close-range finish squared the game before half time and Quaison raised the roof with an amazing strike from distance. Mainz keeper Robin Zentner pulled off several key saves and Levin Mete Oztunali sealed the points with a low drive late on.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Fotostand
Wolfsburg 0-0 Augsburg
A game to forget, which can only be described as a defeat for football. There were precious few chances until the end, when Wolfsburg's Joao Victor put the ball in the net but it was disallowed after a lengthy VAR stoppage, which eventually saw it disallowed for offside.
