Manchester City may only be heading into their second Champions League game of the season but Roberto Mancini’s side’s clash with Dortmund may prove hugely significant for both.
City suffered a 3-2 defeat to Real Madrid in their opening game despite taking the lead twice in the Bernabeu.
This is only their second Champions League campaign after failing to get beyond the group stage last season.
They only collected one point from their opening two matches a year ago and were always playing catch-up to Bayern Munich and Napoli.
Mancini, who has admitted he considered a move for Dortmund’s Poland striker Robert Lewandowski in the summer, will be desperate to be in a better position after two games this time around but they will face a stiff test against the German champions.
Dortmund collected three points with a late 1-0 win over Ajax in their opening game.
Mancini concedes that tonight’s match, which comes before a double-header against Ajax, will be key to his team’s hopes of reaching the knock-out phase.
The Italian said: “The group is very difficult. We didn’t start too well and for this reason it is important to play well against Borussia Dortmund.
“It will probably be a similar game (to Napoli) because Dortmund are very good on the counter-attack and it will be a difficult game. But we want to go through to the second stage this year and this game will be very important.”
Jurgen Klopp’s Dortmund, who managed just four points in the group stage last year, have also endured a patchy opening to the season.
While Mancini was rowing with Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert during his team’s 4-2 League Cup defeat, Klopp was being sent to the stands for arguing with the fourth official in his team’s 3-3 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt.
But they picked up an impressive 5-0 win over Borussia Moen-chengladbach at the weekend.
Although that victory moved them up to third in the Bundesliga they are already seven points off leaders Bayern Munich.
Man. City vs Bor. Dortmund...
• City have never lost at home to a German team and have won three out of four such games, including a 2-0 victory over Bayern Munich last season. The only German team to gain a draw in Manchester was Borussia Moenchengladbach who went away with a 1-1 result in the 1979 UEFA Cup quarter-finals.
• Dortmund won on their last visit to Manchester, beating City’s neighbours United 1-0 in the 1997 CL semi-finals. But they have lost all three away games they have played in England since then.
• City are unbeaten in 17 successive European home games, 14 of which they have won. That run includes eight clean sheets.
• Dortmund have lost four of their last six CL matches and lost all three of their group away games last season.