SC have been able to welcome back a trio of players back from injury over the past week, with Kenneth Schmidt and Manuel Gulde able to make their comebacks in the friendly against Karlsruher SC. Merlin Röhl was also able to return to team training this week. "It's great to see how quickly Merlin was able to return – he must just be able to heal easily," said Julian Schuster. "He took part in two intense sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday, which left no negative impact on him. Now, we just need to take it day-by-day."

The club's medical department still have plenty to keep them busy, however, with Eren Dinkci and Noah Atubolu returning home early from international duty with knocks. Atubolu has been able to resume training with the team, but Dinkci remains a doubt for Saturday's match. "Eren twisted his knee in training. The scans showed that there was no significant damage, but we will have to wait and see," said Schuster. The coach listed Lucas Höler, Michael Gregoritsch, Maximilian Philipp and Florent Muslija as potential replacements.

Strong at home vs. Strong on their travels  

One thing is for certain: over 5,600 SC fans will make the trip north to support their side on Saturday. SC Freiburg head to Dortmund seeking to hand the hosts their first defeat on home soil this season. Head coach Nuri Sahin's side have won all off their seven games in Dortmund across all competitions this season.

"Their biggest advantage is the energy that's created in their stadium," said Schuster. "That can carry over to the pitch, especially when it comes to putting the opponent under pressure. There are various ways of disrupting this rhythm." SC will be able to draw confidence from the fact that they have managed to keep a clean sheet in three of their last four away games.

Not looking at past results

When asked about his side's success rate from the penalty spot, which has been poor in the league this season, Schuster said, "Vince still has a solid record from the spot – it's still better than mine." As a player, Schuster stepped up to take two penalties – he scored against Wehen Wiesbaden's Alexander Walke in 2009 in a 1-0 win in Bundesliga 2, but saw his second attempt saved against FC Schalke 04 in the Bundesliga in 2014/15 (0-0).

Last season, SC fell to a 3-0 defeat in Dortmund on a Friday night, before losing 4-2 at home against the same opponents – despite having taken a 2-1 lead. "I haven't looked at any results," said Schuster. "I'm only interested in what's happening on the training pitch. There was a lot of energy to be felt on Monday again. That leaves me with a good feeling, which we will be taking with us to Dortmund."

Photo: SC Freiburg