Unbeaten U23 eager for the Revierderby | OneFootball

Starting point

Rios has every reason to be satisfied with the start of the season. Despite major personnel turnover in the summer and a small squad during pre-season, Dortmund’s reserves have done remarkably well so far. Two unfortunate draws in Bochum and against 1. FC Köln (both 1-1), along with two wins in Bergisch Gladbach (3-1) and in Hilden (2-0), give cause for optimism not only for the derby but also for the months ahead.

Tuesday’s match will be a meeting of neighboring teams in the table. Fourth-placed Gelsenkirchen sit just ahead of BVB on nine points, having played one game more, while Dortmund have eight. “With every win, confidence naturally grows,” said coach Rios, hopeful of extending the team’s recent upward trend. A victory in this high-profile clash could help polish off their current run of four unbeaten matches and propel them into the group of top teams.

According to Rios, the atmosphere in the days leading up to kickoff is different from the usual league routine: “Dortmund against Schalke — that’s always something special. The boys know it, they can feel it, because there’s always a lot of talk around it. We’re looking forward to measuring ourselves against Schalke.”

Squad

The coach will have to do without Arne Wessels against Schalke after he was sent off with a second yellow in Hilden. The availability of talents Fadi Zarqelain and Diego Ngambia, who have both recently been absent, is also uncertain. “We’ll have to see how their health situation develops,” said Rios.

Opponents

Unlike BVB, who are still unbeaten, FC Schalke have already suffered two defeats. Just how difficult the Royal Blues’ search for greater consistency still is was evident in their wild match in Bocholt on matchday two, when they were 4-0 down after just 14 minutes but ended up winning 5-4.

In the 3-2 defeat to Paderborn, however, S04 threw away a 2-0 lead. “They’ve had an emotional roller-coaster so far this season,” Rios said, describing the striking ups and downs of their upcoming opponents, before adding: “Like many other teams at this stage, it’s also about finding their rhythm for them.”

Clear-cut affairs

The last two Regionalliga meetings between BVB and FC Schalke 04 were both clear-cut affairs for the home side. Last season, the Black and Yellows won the first match at the Rote Erde 4-1, but then lost the return fixture at Schalke’s Parkstadion 4-0.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.