VfL Bochum and Borussia Dortmund will battle in the DFB-Pokal round of 16 this midweek at the Vonovia Ruhrstadion with the two clubs at opposite ends in the Bundesliga table but with a few wins under their belts already since the return to action in Germany.
It's been a long and tiresome season for Bochum already and fans would have been pleased with the break for the World Cup.
🎙 Edin Terzic:"Bochum will be strong and dominant at home. It's going to be a fierce game, a lot of it will come down to the toughness of our tackling. If we stick to our routines from the last few games, there's a good chance we'll advance to the next round." pic.twitter.com/HMN8mZmabX— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) February 7, 2023
🎙 Edin Terzic:"Bochum will be strong and dominant at home. It's going to be a fierce game, a lot of it will come down to the toughness of our tackling. If we stick to our routines from the last few games, there's a good chance we'll advance to the next round." pic.twitter.com/HMN8mZmabX
The club have returned with two wins and two defeats in the Bundesliga already, and with Dortmund in the cup up next before a trip to the champions Bayern Munich in the league, it could be the biggest week of the season for Thomas Letsch's side.
Bochum restarted their league campaign after the finals in Qatar with a 3-1 win at home against Hertha Berlin.
This moved them up above the club in the table and into the relegation playoff spots, thanks to a double from Philipp Hofmann and a goal from Keven Schlotterbeck.
Letsch's side then lost 2-0 to Bayer Leverkusen before a 5-2 hammering at the hands of Mainz. Quite incredibly, however, Bochum returned with a 5-2 win of their own over Hoffenheim, as Hofmann scored once more just before four other goalscorers got in on the act.
In fact, Bochum took a 3-0 lead into the break at half time.
As for Dortmund, they are right back in the mix for the title race after a stunning four-game winning run since the World Cup that has seen them score 13 goals and let in five.
They started this with a memorable 4-3 win over Augsburg at home, as they then defeated Mainz 2-1 and Leverkusen 2-0 on the road.
The club then got their biggest win of the season in beating Freiburg 5-1 at home, and this now pushes Dortmund above them in the table and into third. In fact, BVB now sit behind Union Berlin by just two points and behind the champions and arch rivals Bayern by just three points.
Despite the improved form from Bochum, this should be a relatively easy win for Dortmund. BVB's form away from home has also been excellent this season and they will fancy themselves to be able to get through here and rest a few players as well.
The Black and Yellow will be in search of another win in the DFB-Pokal this season after failing to lift the trophy in the past two seasons.
Forebet predicts a win for Dortmund and for the game to see over 2.5 goals.