Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid Matchday Stats Preview

This will be the 15th meeting between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid in European competition, all of which have been in the UEFA Champions League. Real Madrid are the team Borussia Dortmund have faced most often in the competition (14), while the Spanish side have only faced FC Bayern München (22) and Juventus (16) more often.

Borussia Dortmund have only won three of their 14 meetings with Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League (D5 L6). Among teams they’ve faced at least five times in the competition, only against Manchester City (17%) do they have a lower win percentage than against the Spanish side (21%).

Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid last faced each other in the UEFA Champions League in 2017-18, with los Blancos winning both games in the group stage (3-1 away, 3-2 at home). Neither side has previously managed to win three consecutive games in this fixture in European competition.

This will be Real Madrid’s 18th appearance in a European Cup/UEFA Champions League final, with their 17 already the most of any side. They’ve lifted the trophy in 14 of those previous 17 finals, while a victory here would mean they’ve won the European Cup (15) more than twice as many times as any other team (Milan with the next-most on 7).

Borussia Dortmund are appearing in just their third UEFA Champions League final (won in 1996-97, lost in 2012-13 previously), with their qualification meaning this will be the first final in the competition between German and Spanish opposition since the 2002 final – one which was won by Real Madrid (2-1 v Bayer Leverkusen).

Should they avoid defeat here, Real Madrid will have gone unbeaten across a European Cup/UEFA Champions League season for the first time in their history (currently P12 W8 D4). They’d be only the second Spanish side to win the trophy without losing a single game in that campaign, along with Barcelona in 2005-06 (P13 W9 D4).

Borussia Dortmund finished 5th in the German Bundesliga this season – they’ll be the second-lowest ranked German side to compete in a European Cup/UEFA Champions League final, after Bayern Munich in 1974-75 (10th).

Real Madrid have only trailed for 7.5% of their total game time in the UEFA Champions League this season (90 minutes out of 1,200), the lowest percentage of any side. They’ve come back to win four matches in which they’ve been behind in the competition this term, with only Barcelona in 1999-2000 and Real Madrid themselves in 2016-17 (five each) having more comebacks wins in a single campaign in the competition.

Borussia Dortmund’s opponents have hit the woodwork 12 times in the UEFA Champions League this season (including six times in the semi-final by Paris Saint-Germain); the most a team has ever seen their woodwork hit within a single campaign on record (since 2003-04).

Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels has not missed a single minute of UEFA Champions League football this season. The last outfield player to play every minute of a winning season was Cristiano Ronaldo in 2017-18 with Real Madrid, while the last central defender to do so was Sami Hyypiä in 2004-05 with Liverpool.

With both featuring in the 2013 final, an appearance by either of Borussia Dortmund’s Mats Hummels or Marco Reus would be the biggest gap between European Cup/UEFA Champions League final appearances (11 years) since goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon (12 years, 2003 – 2015), and second-largest by an outfield player in the showpiece event, after Lothar Matthäus (12 years, 1987 – 1999).

Should Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund) and Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid) both appear in this game, it would be the first time two English players have faced each other in a European Cup/UEFA Champions League final while both playing for non-English sides.

Across the last three UEFA Champions League campaigns (since 2021-22), Real Madrid’s Vinícius Júnior has been directly involved in more goals than any other player (31 – 16 goals, 15 assists). 17 of those have come in the knockout stages (eight goals, nine assists), which is also the most of any player in this period.

Vinícius Júnior has five goals and four assists in the UEFA Champions League this season, following on from his seven goals and five assists in 2022-23. Only one player in Champions League history has registered 5+ goals and 5+ assists in consecutive seasons, with Luís Figo doing so in 1999-00 for Barcelona (5 goals, 9 assists) and 2000-01 for Real Madrid (5 goals, 7 assists).

Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos has made the most line-breaking passes in the UEFA Champions League (194), as well as the most leading to final third entries (64). Indeed, Kroos made more line-breaking passes than any other player in the semi-finals of this year’s tournament (45 across the two legs).

Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham is the player who has made the most high-intensity pressures in the UEFA Champions League overall (572) and in the knockout stages (344) this season. Bellingham also has an almost 50-50 split between high intensity pressures made in the opposition half (49.7%) and the defensive half (50.3%) in the competition this term.

Jude Bellingham has created more chances under pressure (19) than any other midfielder in the UEFA Champions League, with four of those resulting in an assist for a Real Madrid teammate. The only player to provide more assists while under pressure from at least one opposition player in the current tournament is Borussia Dortmund’s Marcel Sabitzer (5).

Jadon Sancho has completed 25 dribbles across his six UEFA Champions League appearances for Borussia Dortmund this season; the most by a player in the knockout stages in a single edition since Neymar for finalists Paris Saint-Germain in 2019-20 (32).

Real Madrid’s Joselu is averaging 10.1 shots per 90 minutes in the UEFA Champions League this season (30 shots in 268 minutes), the most of any player to play 100+ minutes in a campaign on record (2003-04 onwards), while only Olivier Giroud (one every 43 minutes in 2020-21) has scored at a better mins/goal ratio than Joselu this season (five goals, one every 54 minutes) in a season in Champions League history (min. 250 mins played).

Borussia Dortmund’s Gregor Kobel has saved 84% of the shots on target he’s faced in this season’s UEFA Champions League (42/50). Indeed, based on the quality of shots on target faced using xG, he’s the goalkeeper who has prevented the most goals in the competition this term (+7.1 – seven conceded from 14.1 xG on target faced).