Can Madrid cope without Casemiro against free scoring Dortmund

Meeting for the seventh time in the Champions League in the space of four years, a rivalry of sorts has been forged between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid. The holders were able to get their revenge on Die Schwarzgelben under Jurgen Klopp having been dumped out by the Germans in the semi-finals in 2013, despatching of Dortmund en route to the trophy the following year.

This isn’t the first time the two are meeting in the group stages either, with the Germans coming out on top of the group of death in 2012, with Madrid taking second ahead of Ajax and Manchester City. It’s this Tuesday’s hosts that have the slight upper hand in recent years then, scoring 10 goals to Los Blancos’ 9 over the last six matches between the sides, but it’s been all change in both dugouts since they last met.

Thomas Tuchel and Zinedine Zidane are two of the youngest managers in the Champions League this time around, meeting for the first time for what promises to be the tie of the round.

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The hosts are certainly coming into the game in stronger form, with Tuchel’s young and exciting side hitting their stride to devastating effect since a shock defeat to newly promoted RB Leipzig earlier in the month. In the four games that have passed since Dortmund have scored 21 goals, taking their tally in terms of different goalscorers across the league and Champions League this season to 12 from just six matches.

Leading the way, unsurprisingly, is Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who has picked up where he left off last season with 6 to his name already. He will need to pick up the mantle from Robert Lewandowski, who was the scourge of Real Madrid en route to the final in 2013, while the absence of Marco Reus puts further pressure on the rapid frontman to find the net given the German scored both goals when these sides last met a year on.

It’s in the Dortmund midfield, however, where the most eye-catching performances have come, not least from Raphael Guerreiro. The Portuguese left-back was part of the side that claimed Euro 2016 glory in the summer but he has been given a new role at his new club and is flourishing in the midfield under Tuchel’s tutelage.

Rested from the off at the weekend against Freiburg, the youngster came off the bench to wrap up a 3-1 win, scoring his third goal in his last 4 appearances for the club having registered a further 3 assists in that time. He was teed up for the final goal on Saturday by Gonzalo Castro, who is fast emerging as an unsung hero for this Dortmund side. 

The 29 year old is an experienced head in an otherwise youthful side and his unselfish approach is getting the very best from the youngsters around him. Only Franck Ribery has registered more assists in Europe’s top 5 leagues this season than Castro’s four, with another in the Champions League as well as three goals across the two tournaments, meaning he has directly contributed to a goal every 46 minutes of action thus far.

As a result he and Guerreiro may well get the nod in the midfield for the home side, with Mario Gotze missing out having seen his return to the club somewhat overshadowed by the performances of those around him. It’s a decision that may well be key on Tuesday, with Real Madrid missing a player that has proven to be decisive to Zinedine Zidane’s success at the club.

Amongst a team full of superstars Casemiro has been pivotal to allowing the more ‘Madrid’ players in this squad to flourish, safe in the knowledge that their defence is better protected than it was in previous campaigns. A minor leg fracture - as bizarre as that sounds - will see the Brazilian miss out once more and his absence was certainly felt as the reigning European champions were held to a second successive league stalemate at the weekend, this time by Liga minnows Las Palmas.

It was a result that saw Zidane’s side’s lead atop the table in Spain cut to just one point having less than a week ago missed the chance to break the all time winning streak record in La Liga, with a draw against Villarreal ending their run at 16. Indeed, where all seemed so promising such a short time ago, there are concerns that Madrid are beginning to buckle without their midfield anchor, which is a worry ahead of a trip to such a free scoring opponent.

The visitors on Tuesday of course have firepower of their own in abundance, although the likes of Bale - without a goal in five - and Ronaldo are certainly misfiring at present. The latter in particular is taking longer to fully recover from the injury that saw his Euro 2016 final cut short than the club hoped. Disappointing performances in recent weeks ultimately saw him withdrawn against Las Palmas in an act of some courage from his manager, with the decision not sitting well with the Portuguese, who is very much used to having things his own way.

Nevertheless, it was a decision that was more than justified from Zidane given that Ronaldo's three league appearances thus far have heralded a WhoScored.com rating of just 6.81. That ranks way down in 17th for the club this season, and the worst of any Madrid outfielder to start more than once.

Instead it’s the likes of Kroos (7.93 league rating) and Modric (7.76) that have shone for Los Blancos so far, setting up an intriguing midfield battle on Tuesday night. They will need to show real discipline to prevent their hosts from continuing their superb scoring streak, and it may well determine who comes out on top in this heavyweight group stage bout.

Who will come out on top when Dortmund host Real Madrid on Tuesday? Let us know in the comments below