It’s getting the business end of the UEFA Champions League group stages and in Group H, one big side are guaranteed to miss out on a place in the next round. It was tipped as the Group of Death when the draw is made and with Real Madrid, Tottenham and Dortmund in the same group, it certainly is the case. In the 5^th matchweek of this season’s competition, Tottenham make the trip to Germany to face Dortmund. Spurs are currently top of the group with 10 points while Dortmund are 3^rd with just two points.

STATS

• Dortmund have seriously struggled in Group H and with two draws and two losses from their opening four matches, they are on the brink of being knocked out. Their two 1-1 draws with APOEL have hurt their chances of qualifying massively as two wins in those two games would have put them on six points. They also lost 3-1 to both Real Madrid and Tottenham and now have a huge uphill task on their hands.
• Tottenham, on the other hand, have been brilliant in the Champions League and look almost nailed on to qualify for the knockout stages, something that they can confirm with a win over Dortmund. They were particularly impressive as they beat Real Madrid 3-1 at Wembley in their last European game. If they can stay unbeaten in this group, it will be a huge achievement.
• Dortmund have struggled to find an out-and-out goal scorer in the groups so far and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Raphael Guerreiro, Sokratis and Andriy Yarmolenko all have one goal each.
• Harry Kane is having another great season for Tottenham and he has been fantastic in the Champions League. With five goals in four games, only Cristiano Ronaldo (6) has managed more goals than the English striker.

HEAD TO HEAD

This game will be the fourth time the two sides have met since 2016 and it gives Tottenham the opportunity to make it 2-2 in terms of wins. The German side won on both occasions back in the Europa League in March last year but it was Spurs who won this season's other Champions League fixture thanks to goals from Harry Kane (2) and Heung-Min Son. There have more been more than 2.5 match goals in all three matches and Tuesday’s meeting looks as though it will fit that trend.

Head to head matches: Borussia Dortmund - Tottenham Hotspur

13.09.2017	UEFA	Tottenham Hotspur	Borussia Dortmund	3:1
17.03.2016	UEFA	Tottenham Hotspur	Borussia Dortmund	1:2
10.03.2016	UEFA	Borussia Dortmund	Tottenham Hotspur	3:0

DORTMUND NEWS

It is vital that Dortmund pick up all three points if they want any chance of featuring in the knockout stage but with several injuries, it won’t be easy. Their biggest absence is, of course, Marco Reus but with important first-teamers Sokratis and Lukasz Piszczek also ruled out, they might struggle to cope with the threat of Spurs’ attack.

Latest matches: Borussia Dortmund

17.11.2017	Bund	VfB Stuttgart	Borussia Dortmund	2:1	L
04.11.2017	Bund	Borussia Dortmund	Bayern Munich	1:3	L
01.11.2017	UEFA	Borussia Dortmund	Apoel Nicosia FC	1:1	D
28.10.2017	Bund	Hannover 96	Borussia Dortmund	4:2	L
24.10.2017	DFB	FC Magdeburg	Borussia Dortmund	0:5	W

TOTTENHAM NEWS

A win for Tottenham would secure their qualification to the next round and would put them in a great position to finish the group as winners with APOEL in their final match. However, they are expected to rest Harry Kane and Dele Alli after looking low on fitness in the North London derby. Toby Alderweireld won't feature due to injury and neither will Victor Wanyama.

Latest matches: Tottenham Hotspur

18.11.2017	Prem	Arsenal FC	Tottenham Hotspur	2:0	L
05.11.2017	Prem	Tottenham Hotspur	Crystal Palace	1:0	W
01.11.2017	UEFA	Tottenham Hotspur	Real Madrid	3:1	W
28.10.2017	Prem	Manchester United	Tottenham Hotspur	1:0	L
25.10.2017	EFL	Tottenham Hotspur	West Ham United	2:3	L

SUMMARY

After a very poor start to their Champions League campaign so far, Dortmund will take confidence from a Spurs side that is expected to be far from full-strength and the Germans have a good chance to pick up their first European win of the season. However, Tottenham still won’t be easy to beat and with a defensive line that is still very strong, Aubameyang will have to be on his game on Tuesday night. It also has the potential to be a high-scoring match because of Dortmund’s expansive attacking football and their lack of defensive discipline.