Betis seek a fourth straight Champions League win at Dortmund on 4 November

Stakes at the Signal Iduna Park

Betis travel to Dortmund on Wednesday, 4 November, for the fourth matchday of the Champions League league phase, with kick-off at 21:00. Pellegrini's side have nine points from three games, having beaten Lille 3-2, Porto 3-2 and Feyenoord 1-0. A fourth win would lift them to 12 points and practically guarantee at least a playoff place. Dortmund sit 13th on six points, following a 3-2 home win over Villarreal, a win away at Sabah and a 1-0 defeat at Bodø/Glimt.

Real Betis9

Borussia Dortmund6

Real Betis

9 points

Borussia Dortmund

6 points

Data from the article text

Dortmund at home and a first meeting

Dortmund have lost only two Champions League home matches in the last four seasons, 0-2 to Inter Milan and 2-3 to Barcelona, while winning 14 and drawing seven. Betis have never played at the Signal Iduna Park and have never met Dortmund in an official match. The Andalusian club expects around 6,000 supporters in the stands. Real Madrid, Barcelona and Sevilla are the only Spanish clubs to have won in Dortmund, and a Betis victory would add them to that list. Dortmund's most recent game was a 2-2 draw with Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena on Saturday, 31 October, with Fabio Silva scoring in the 89th minute.

Wins14

Draws7

Defeats2

Wins

14

Draws

7

Defeats

2

Data from the article text

Pellegrini's rotations and the Betis line-up

Pellegrini has defended his rotation policy, arguing that it keeps the whole squad committed across all three competitions.

“The statistics say that with nine or ten points a team practically qualifies for the next round.”

He said Wednesday gives his side the chance to reach that first milestone, with the aim of adding more points afterwards. El Mundo expects Ez Abde and Antony on the wings, with Troy Parrott leading the attack because Cucho Hernández is injured. Isco Alarcón is expected to continue as the central attacking midfielder, with Giovani Lo Celso as an alternative. Pellegrini also backed Antony, saying the forward has had physical problems that kept him from his best level but that the coaching staff and teammates fully trust him.

Sporting director Manu Fajardo described the trip as a matter of pride for the club's supporters.

“It is a source of satisfaction, a source of pride, not only for me but for all the Betis fans.”

Marc Bartra returns to Dortmund, where he played between 2016 and 2018, and has two league goals and two in European competition so far this season.

Dortmund's threats and Kovac's plan

Serhou Guirassy is Dortmund's main threat, with four goals in three Champions League matchdays and five more in other competitions, according to El Mundo. Fabio Silva has five goals and Maximilian Beier two, while Nico Schlotterbeck leads the defence and Gregor Kobel is in goal. Kobel has made a strong start to the season after an excellent World Cup, and RTS expects his saves to free his teammates to attack. Niko Kovac praised Pellegrini as a great coach and a gentleman, and said his squad was fully fit for the match. Dortmund abandoned their usual back three on Saturday, and Kovac said either a three or a four-man defence works if the team commits to it.

Broadcast and kick-off

In Germany the match is shown live and exclusively on DAZN, which requires a paid subscription, while Amazon Prime Video and Sky are not carrying it. Free-to-air ZDF will show only a summary of the Wednesday games in its sportstudio programme from 23:00. In Switzerland, RTS 2 broadcasts the match from 20:10. Kick-off at the Signal Iduna Park is at 21:00.