09 facts to give Dortmund hope for the trip to Stuttgart | OneFootball

01 | BVB are hard to break downPerhaps the biggest difference between the two teams so far this still-young season has been their work off the ball. While Borussia Dortmund have conceded only two goals in their first three Bundesliga matches, VfB Stuttgart have already been beaten eight times. However, five of those eight goals came on the opening matchday in Munich (1-5). That was followed by a 4-1 win over Cologne and a 1-2 defeat away to TSG Hoffenheim. The Black and Yellows are the only team in the league yet to allow a clear-cut chance for the opposition. Stuttgart’s opponents have already had ten big chances.

02 | Set piecesVfB’s goals usually come from open play, with footballing solutions always taking priority. Corners and free-kicks hardly play a role. Last season, the share of goals scored from set pieces was just 13 percent, lower than any other team. In 2025/26, BVB not only conceded the fewest goals in the league (34), but only ten of those came from dead-ball situations as well (the second-best mark in the league).

03 | Many away wins since 2010BVB have won more Bundesliga matches away at VfB than at any other club in their history (17 times). Since 2010, they have recorded ten away wins, two draws and three defeats there. Borussia have failed to score in only one of their last 20 Bundesliga away matches at VfB (a 0-2 defeat in December 2023).

04 | BVB are on a rollThree matches, three wins, nine points. BVB last managed that kind of return after three matchdays eleven years ago. Their best-ever starts came in the 2010s under coaches Jürgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel (five wins from the first five matchdays in each case). Across all competitions, Niko Kovac’s team have won their last five competitive matches – always scoring at least twice and even keeping a clean sheet in three of them.

05 | Pace going forwardThe Black and Yellows are among the fastest teams in the league, averaging 174 sprints per match, and they have recorded the most intensive runs of all. When Borussia win the ball and have space to attack, their pace allows them to get into dangerous areas quickly. At the same time, their defensive cover is working well: BVB have allowed only one opposition shot following a counterattack so far.

06 | Dortmund’s bench strengthBVB have scored 17 goals in six competitive matches, including the Super Cup. Their substitutes have contributed to eight of those goals, with four goals and four assists. In last weekend’s 3-0 win over Paderborn, substitute Felix Nmecha settled the match with two goals after assists from fellow substitutes Maxi Beier and Marcel Sabitzer. Since assists began being recorded, there have never been more than the current six goal involvements by substitutes after three league matchdays. How valuable late impact can be was also shown in their most recent visit to Stuttgart: on that occasion, BVB struck in stoppage time through substitutes Julian Brandt and Karim Adeyemi to take all three points with a 2-0 win.

08 | Kobel a safe pair of hands in goalGregor Kobel won promotion to the Bundesliga with VfB Stuttgart in 2020 and moved to Borussia Dortmund a year later. Last weekend, in the 3-0 win over SC Paderborn, he kept a clean sheet for the second time this season and for the 72nd time overall in a competitive match for BVB. Since promotion in 1976, only three BVB goalkeepers have managed more clean sheets. Kobel will likely overtake one of them this season.

09 | Guirassy is more than just a number nineFor Serhou Guirassy, this match is a return to his former club. The striker travels to Stuttgart in good form: after three Bundesliga matches, he has two goals and two assists to his name. That not only puts him top of BVB’s internal scoring charts, but alongside his ten shots, he has also created six chances for teammates to shoot.

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