- Team form: Dortmund have won 3 of their last 5 games.
- Recent results: Paderborn have won 2 of their last 5, but have drawn 0-0 and lost 0-1 in their 2 Bundesliga 2026/2027 matches to date.
A big step up for Paderborn
Dortmund are odds-on favourites for Saturday's game at Signal Iduna Park, where they will face a Paderborn side in decent shape, but their league form has been mixed and it will be interesting to see how they fare against Die Schwarzgelben. Borussia Dortmund sit 2nd in the Bundesliga 2026/2027 table on 6 points from a possible 6 while the newly-promoted Paderborn are 13th on 1 point from 2 games.
Dortmund have won 3, drawn 1 and lost 1 of their 5 competitive matches to date, currently enjoying a 3-match winning streak after a 5-0 drubbing of Hamburg Eimsbutteler BC in the DFB Pokal and 3-2 win away to Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga 2026/2027.
Paderborn have also won 2 of their 5 matches to date, drawing 0-0 away at Mainz and losing 0-1 at home to Freiburg in their other 2 Bundesliga 2026/2027 outings.
Paderborn can get the crowd going
Step up in class
Dortmund are a comfortable 1.22 favorites for this match, with Paderborn 9.0 and the draw 6.0, but there are a couple of reasons why the promoted side can get the fans going on Saturday.
- Firstly, it is a significant step up in class for them and they have yet to win away from home in the Bundesliga 2026/2027, drawing 0-0 at Mainz and conceding 0 goals at an average of 0.00 per game on the road.
- Secondly, Paderborn are a pressing team.
Pressing and system
Ralf Kettemann has his men set up in a flexible back-three system that allows him to rotate players in and out of the line with ease. They are brave in that they press first and ask questions later and should be able to win turnovers in Dortmund's half that they can run with.
Dortmund’s quality will out
It should be a bit of a scrappy game until Dortmund's superiority in quality tells, with Guinean striker Serhou Guirassy, who has 2 goals in 2 Bundesliga 2026/2027 appearances and has a sharp edge in the box, the biggest danger to Paderborn's goalie.
- Niko Kovac's men have been playing with a compact 3-4-2-1/3-4-3 shape, where they make the ball travel fast in vertical combinations and show aggressive high pressing.
- Dortmund's high line and central overloads should test Paderborn's compact shape while the visitors will look to nick turnovers and break quickly.
- Our recommendation for the game is Over 2.5 goals at 1.35 as the home side have some real firepower in attack and Paderborn should be up for it.
