Both sides are expected to line up in a 3-4-2-1, which sets up a fascinating mirror-image contest. Hoeneß and Kovac will each look to overload the half-spaces and spring their wing-backs high, so the game could become a battle of who blinks first in the wide areas. Stuttgart's back three will have to be switched on from the first whistle because Dortmund's front line — likely Ethan Nwaneri and Fabio Silva supporting Serhou Guirassy — has the movement and physicality to knife through the lines if the hosts' midfield screen is slow to shuffle across.

In midfield, the double pivot is where this one is won and lost. Dortmund's expected pairing of Jude Bellingham and Felix Nmecha gives them a blend of drive and control that can dominate the centre of the park. Stuttgart will need their own engine room to be aggressive and disciplined, because if they allow Bellingham to run at the back three, it is going to be a long evening. The hosts' attacking threat will likely flow through Deniz Undav, who is available and capable of leading the line, but service into him could be sporadic if Dortmund's press is as well-drilled as it has looked.

Set-pieces are another area where Dortmund carry a genuine threat. With the height of Nico Schlotterbeck and Waldemar Anton in that back three, Kovac's side can hurt Stuttgart from dead balls, and the hosts have shown vulnerabilities in that department. Stuttgart's own set-piece delivery will need to be pinpoint because clear-cut chances from open play may be at a premium against this Dortmund shape.