Dortmund vs FC Copenhagen prediction: EUROPE: Champions League – Group Stage betting tips on match 2022-09-05 16:45.
Following back-to-back 1-0 victories in the Bundesliga, Borussia Dortmund return to UEFA Champions League (UCL) action in search of bettering their group stage exit from last season. Boss Edin Terzić managed Dortmund for four UCL games in a caretaker role in 2020/21, when they were also paired with Manchester City and Sevilla who they only managed one win against (D1, L2), so beginning with maximum points at home to Copenhagen could be crucial!
This is Dortmund’s club-record seventh consecutive appearance in the UCL group stage, yet a successful start is by no means a given as they have claimed just one victory across the last three competition openers (D1, L1). Dortmund may lean on their unbeaten record against Danish sides (W3, D1) to help their cause, but perhaps expect a close encounter regardless, as three of their last four victories this season have been by a 1-0 scoreline.
Looking to end that unbeaten run is Copenhagen, the Danish record holders for UCL group stage appearances (five) despite this being their first since 2016/17. Three of their prior four UCL proper campaigns ended at the group stage, so the visitors know that they’ll be up against it here, especially after a mixed start to their domestic league campaign (W4, L4).
While Copenhagen are certainly favourites to drop out of the competition at this stage, their return of four clean sheets from their previous UCL group appearance may inspire belief (W2, D3, L1). Despite the positives, Copenhagen have failed to win 13 of their 15 UCL away games proper (D2, L11), so notching a tenth consecutive unbeaten European away game in any competition may be a bridge too far (W6, D3) against such high-quality opponents.
Players to watch: Dortmund captain Marco Reus has four goal contributions across his last five games (G2, A2) and scored three goals across his last three UCL group appearances. As for Copenhagen, Viktor Claesson scored within ten minutes of their crucial UCL qualifying win, meaning he has netted in UEFA competitions in ten of the last 11 seasons!
Hot stat: Dortmund failed to win in five of their last seven European home games (W2, D3, L2).