Monday, June 16

Sports Mole previews Tuesday's Club World Cup clash between Fluminense and Borussia Dortmund, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Borussia Dortmund’s first Club World Cup game will come against Brazilian side Fluminense at MetLife Stadium on Tuesday.

Fluminense managed to finish as runners-up in the 2023 edition of the Club World Cup when they lost 4-0 against Manchester City, while their Bundesliga opponents have never competed in the tournament but qualified for this year’s edition because of their four-year UEFA coefficient rankings.

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Match preview

The Brasileiro side are currently sixth in the top flight with 20 points after beating Internacional 2-0 on June 2, a game in which they created just 0.34 xG from open play.

To their credit, Tricolor have netted 10 goals in their past four games, as many as they managed to score in their previous nine.

Fluminense have scored at least two goals in six of their last seven competitive outings, with their most recent four games seeing at least one first-half goal.

Head coach Renato Gaucho will be pleased by his side’s defensive displays considering they come into Tuesday’s clash having kept two consecutive clean sheets.

Fluminense are unbeaten in six matches, achieving five victories in that time, but they did draw two and lose three of their prior seven.

As for Dortmund, they ended their Bundesliga season in fourth place with 57 points, qualifying for the Champions League.

Manager Niko Kovac deserves praise for turning his side’s fortunes around considering he inherited the team from Nuri Sahin when they were 11th in January.

BVB ended the campaign in outstanding fashion, winning their final six fixtures of the season while avoiding defeat in their final seven.

The Bundesliga club have scored 20 goals in their past six matches, with the Germans netting at least twice in 10 of their last 12.

At the other end of the pitch, Dortmund have been somewhat vulnerable, conceding 13 in their eight most recent games.

Fluminense form (all competitions):

Borussia Dortmund form (all competitions):

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Team News

Fluminense will be led by veteran Thiago Silva, who was partnered in central defence by Juan Freytes last time out.

Thiago Santos may be stationed at the base of a midfield three, with Nonato and Matheus Martinelli likely to be played as number eights.

In the forward line, striker Everaldo could be flanked by wide players Jhon Arias and Kevin Serna.

Opponents Dortmund should be expected to field Niklas Sule, Waldemar Anton and Ramy Bensebaini in a back three given Emre Can and Nico Schlotterbeck are dealing with injuries.

Considering Felix Nmecha and Marcel Sabitzer often played together in a double pivot during the 2024-25 season, they are probable candidates to start in midfield on Tuesday.

Julian Brandt and Karim Adeyemi could play in supportive roles behind striker Serhou Guirassy.

Fluminense possible starting lineup:

Fabio; Xavier, Silva, Freytes, Rene; Nonato, Santos, Martinelli; Arias, Everaldo, Serna

Borussia Dortmund possible starting lineup:

Kobel; Sule, Anton, Bensebaini; Ryerson, Sabitzer, Nmecha, Svensson; Brandt, Adeyemi; Guirassy

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Carlos Vinicius Amorim, Brazilian football expert

Fluminense are in strong form, but Brazilian football expert Carlos Vinicius Amorim has claimed that the team do not have the capacity to dominate their clash against Dortmund, saying:

"With six games unbeaten and only three defeats in the last 18 matches, Fluminense have been in good form since their legend Renato Gaucho took over as coach in April.

"However, the Brazilian team don't have a strong squad and did not invest much money before the Club World Cup because they do not have the same deep pockets as the other 3 Brazilian clubs in the competition.

"They only signed Yeferson Soteldo, a good player, but inconsistent. For "Flu", Borussia Dortmund is the biggest challenger in Group F.

"The expectation for the match is the Brazilian side will not have the ball, trying to be dangerous with counterattacks, especially on long balls, looking for the speedy Jhon Arias, Flu's biggest star. Borussia Dortmund are the clear favourites here.

"They will keep the ball for almost the entire game and will look for spaces in the opponent's defence. The German time have been improving since Niko Kovac's arrival in February, putting the BVB in fourth position in Bundesliga and guaranteeing a place in the next Champions League.

"Even with the other side being the favourite, Fluminense could try to hold on the draw and dream of beating Mamelodi Sundowns and Ulsan HD, a scenario that could put Flu in the lead of the group. 

"But, it is most likely is the Brazilian team lose the game against Dortmund and fight for second place."

A second-placed finish would guarantee progression to the next round of the tournament, and it would no doubt be seen as a success for the Brazilian club.

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We say: Fluminense 2-3 Borussia Dortmund

 

Fluminense should be confident of scoring on Tuesday given their strong form, as well as the fact that BVB have been porous at the back.

However, it is difficult to look past Dortmund’s impressive displays in the final third, and they could emerge as narrow victors.

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