Pre-Match Report
Niko Kovac before the game against Sporting: "The first leg is the benchmark"
"This round isn't over yet, it's only half-time," explained the BVB coach with a view to a possible place in the round of 16. As the Black & Yellows won 3-0 in Lisbon in the first leg of the play-off, a draw or even a defeat by a margin of up to two goals would be enough to see Borussia progress on Wednesday evening (the facts). However, the BVB coach does not want to get tied up in these considerations: "We are here tomorrow to win. I expect a difficult game in which we will give 100%."
Pascal Gross, scorer of the second goal in the first leg, agrees with his coach: "We had a good game in Lisbon - but we should approach tomorrow's game like a normal home game, it's 0-0." Borussia are determined to win their clash with Sporting: "I've seen bigger comebacks in the history of the Champions League, you shouldn't forget that," said the BVB midfielder, adding: "We'll go out and be ready to play a good game."
Two Black & Yellows players were also ready at the final training session on Tuesday afternoon: Carney Chukwuemeka, who has been absent recently due to knee problems, and Ramy Bensebaini, who had been suffering from a muscle strain, completed the final session with their teammates. "We're happy that both are healthy again,’" said Kovac, who wants to give both Chukwuemeka and Bensebaini minutes against Sporting “if possible. But the outlook is more towards the next few games." BVB will definitely have to do without the injured Felix Nmecha.
The visitors from Portugal, who still lead their domestic league table ahead of Benfica despite a 2-2 draw against 12th-placed Arouca at the weekend, currently have bigger injury worries. Sporting are likely to be without a number of key players on Wednesday evening. "They have a big squad and I'm sure their coach knows exactly how he will replace these players," said Niko Kovac, warning against underestimating Lisbon's squad: "It's a great opportunity for these players to show what they can do. That doesn't make it easy for us. They're fresh, they're motivated, they're full of energy."
Borussia have prevailed in each of their knockout clashes with teams from Portugal to date. In Kovac's words: "We must not take a step backwards, but forwards. We have to believe in our strengths and take tomorrow's game very seriously. We will try to give our best and hopefully reach the next round." The BVB coach is particularly positive about the performance from the first leg: "That's the benchmark, that's what the players are capable of - we're all convinced of that."
Nina Bargel-Neuhaus