A place in the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League will be at stake on Tuesday night, when Borussia Dortmund host Atletico Madrid in the second leg of their quarter-final clash. Kick-off is scheduled for 21:00 CET. 

BVB passed their warm-up act on Saturday, as they picked up a hard-fought 2-1 win away to Borussia Mönchengladbach. Now the Black & Yellows will be hoping to carry the tailwind from that result and secure a place in the last four of the Champions League by beating Atletico Madrid. The 2-1 defeat in the first leg in the Spanish capital last week means BVB will need to win by two clear goals to be sure of a place in the next round. If Edin Terzic's team succeed, it will be the fifth time in club history that Dortmund have reached the semi-finals of Europe's elite club competition after 1964, 1997, 1998 and 2013. 

"We have to be patient, calm and focused. We have to be efficient," said Julian Brandt about how the team are approaching the game. Both the midfielder and coach Edin Terzic are counting on support from the stands. "The atmosphere in Dortmund is unique," says Brandt, who remembers the home game against Inter Milan in 2019, when BVB came from 2-0 down to score three goals: "The fans and the style of play sparked an energy that allowed us to turn the game around. The fans offer us a huge chance to push ourselves beyond our limits." Terzic adds: "We are sure that our fans will create a great atmosphere and we want to repay them with a good performance."

Atletico win in the league 

Their opponents were also successful at the weekend: the Spanish side, who occupy fourth place in La Liga, ran out 3-1 winners at home to third-placed Girona. Antoine Griezmann, Atletico's top scorer with 21 goals in all competitions, netted twice.

Although Griezmann didn't score in the first leg, he did provide the assist for his side's second goal. Sebastien Haller then pulled one back for BVB to make it 2-1. However, the attacker will not be on the pitch at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK on Tuesday evening. He had to be withdrawn following a coming-together against Mönchengladbach and will be out for the next few weeks (personnel news). 

Im Sturm stehen Terzic Niclas Füllkrug und Youssoufa Moukoko zur Verfügung: „Wichtig wird sein, dass wir nicht nur zwei gute Stürmer haben, sondern dass alle bereit sind, über 90 oder 120 Minuten alles zu investieren.“ Im Hinspiel hatte der BVB viele Spieler auf dem Platz, die zum ersten Mal in einem Champions-League-Viertelfinale standen. Dort habe die Mannschaft Erfahrungen gemacht, „um es von Beginn an besser zu machen und zu zeigen, dass wir bereit sind, in die nächste Runde einzuziehen“.

Terzic's options up front are Niclas Füllkrug and Youssoufa Moukoko: "The important thing is not just that we have two good strikers, but that everyone is prepared to give their all for 90 or 120 minutes," said the BVB head coach. In the first leg, many BVB players were competing in a Champions League quarter-final for the first time. This experience has provided the team with the insight on "how to do better from the start and show that we are ready to go through to the next round."

Christina Reinke

BVB-TV by 1&1: the press conference before the game against Atletico