Borussia Dortmund will travel to Madrid today to partake in a Champions League match that, believe it or not, is not actually meaningless. If Dortmund lose to Real Madrid and Apoel beat Tottenham, not only will Dortmund’s Champions League Campaign be over, but also its Europa League Campaign, as such circumstances would cause Dortmund to finish 4th in group H.

In short, this match could be very significant. Tottenham have been in poor form since the international break and could easily drop points, so Dortmund should really push for a result at the Bernabeu. Unless, of course, you’re of the mindset that the Europa League is a waste of time.

Of course, getting any result from the Bernabeu will be incredibly difficult. While Real Madrid have struggled more than usual this season, sitting at 4th (!) place in La Liga, they still feature plenty of talented players like Isco, Toni Kroos, and Luka Modric. Oh, and Ronaldo.

On top of this, Borussia Dortmund are, for the lack of a better word, a mess right now. They’ve one once in their last 10 match days, their only victory being a DFB Cup match to a third tier side. Peter Bosz has seemingly lost the dressing room, the players seem dejected, and it feels like half the squad is injured.

This is the projected lineup for tonight’s match:

A back three with only two natural CBs, two DMs in midfield, and a CB at RWB, against one of the best squads in the world. What could go wrong? At least we have Guerreiro and Pulisic to make some magic happen along the left side.

Projected Scoreline

Oh, boy.

3-0 Borussia Dortmund, because why not.