Borussia Dortmund at the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 is very different from the team that suffered a crushing defeat against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in October, despite leading by two goals.
With Vinicius Junior taking the lead, Real Madrid scored five consecutive goals. At that time, Dortmund was coached by Nuri Sahin – who had to say goodbye last January.
Mike Tullberg took over temporarily for a few days, before Niko Kovac arrived and has made his mark ever since.
Thanks to his experience as a veteran coach who previously managed both the Croatian national team and Bayern Munich, Kovac helped Dortmund take off.
Dortmund staged their most impressive comeback in over a decade: winning 22 of the final 24 points and climbing to fourth place in the Bundesliga, with the reward being a spot in next season's Champions League.
Furthermore, Dortmund also excelled in the Champions League and made Barcelona tremble in the second leg of the quarter-finals.
In the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 , Dortmund are unbeaten with 3 wins and 1 draw – against Fluminense, who have just qualified for the semi-finals against Chelsea.
Although most of the opponents in the US recently weren't particularly strong, Kovac's impact, both tactically and in terms of fighting spirit, cannot be underestimated. Serhou Guirassy is also a threat to any defense.
In the last 11 Bundesliga matches, Kovac led Dortmund to 9 wins and 2 draws. One of the most impressive results was the 4-2 victory against Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen.
Now, the two meet again in a different scenario. Alonso is making his mark with changes at Real Madrid , and is eager to beat Dortmund to prove the quality of his work.
The stability in the three-centre-back system, with Tchouameni moving from midfield to defense, is showing improved flexibility – especially in the second half of the round of 16 match against Juventus.
Alonso's new system transforms Federico Valverde into a free-roaming central midfielder, often penetrating the penalty area to take shots. Arda Guler also has plenty of space to showcase his abilities.
Alonso is facing a dilemma: should he start Kylian Mbappe, or continue to trust the "lucky charm" Gonzalo Garcia – who has scored 3 goals and provided 1 assist?
Gonzalo is a typical "number 9," not needing much possession but being very effective. He also actively engages in high-intensity pressing.
It was a highly anticipated match. However, many people were somewhat disappointed not to witness the clash between the Bellingham brothers.
Jude is currently the leader of Real Madrid, while Jobe quickly shone with Dortmund but was suspended for the quarter-finals.
Force:
Real Madrid: Camavinga, Mendy, Alaba, and Endrick are injured.
Dortmund: Emre Can and Schlotterbeck are injured; Jobe Bellingham is suspended.
Predicted lineup:
Real Madrid (3-5-2) : Courtois; R u diger, Tchouam e ni, Huijsen; Alexander-Arnold, Valverde , Arda G u ler, Bellingham, F ran Garc i a; G onzalo , Vin i cius .
Dortmund (3-5-2): Kobel; S u le, Anton, Bensebaini; Ryerson; Gro ss , Sabitzer, Nmecha, Svensson; Guirassy, Adeyemi.
Match odds: Real Madrid -1.5
Goal ratio: 3
Prediction: Real Madrid wins 3-2 .
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/nhan-dinh-bong-da-real-madrid-vs-dortmund-tu-ket-fifa-club-world-cup-2418489.html
![[Photo] Reception to welcome General Secretary and President To Lam and his wife on their State visit to the Philippines](https://vphoto.vietnam.vn/thumb/1200x675/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2026/06/01/1780295488620_vna-potal-chieu-dai-chao-mung-tong-bi-thu-chu-tich-nuoc-to-lam-va-phu-nhan-tham-cap-nha-nuoc-toi-philippines-8798060-7855-jpg.webp)
Comment (0)