Borussia Dortmund has established itself over the past few decades as the “second force” in the German Bundesliga. The club has reached the Champions League final twice, won the German championship and the national cup, and also brought such talents as Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham, and Karim Adeyemi to the attention of the football world. However, the “Black and Yellows” have only managed to break Bayern’s dominance sporadically. Dortmund began another season as the second favorite to win the league title, with bookmakers offering odds of 10.0 on that outcome. That said, it is precisely the Dortmund side that topped the Bundesliga table after four rounds, keeping Bayern and Freiburg two points behind. The club’s management has expressed its satisfaction with the current situation by indicating its intention to sign a new contract with Niko Kovač and his staff. Recall that the Croatian joined the Dortmund side during the season before last and, seemingly in an already hopeless situation, guided them back into the Champions League places. In addition to winning all four of their Bundesliga matches, Borussia have also made a successful start to their campaigns in Europe’s elite competition and the national cup this season. Overall, the situation in Niko Kovač’s camp suggests that Dortmund should enter the match against Werder as favorites, focused exclusively on taking all three points. The main issue is the limited preparation time. The players will only just return from international duty, and a few days after the league match they will travel to Norway for a Champions League game against Bodø/Glimt. The question is whether they will have enough motivation specifically for the match against Werder... The Bremen club does not have ambitions as high as those of their upcoming opponents. However, the “Musicians” have made a more than respectable start to the Bundesliga season. While they certainly cannot be proud of their 4–1 defeat to Freiburg, victories over Leipzig and Augsburg, as well as a draw in Cologne, highlight their decent form. Moreover, Werder are focused solely on and participating only in the German championship, meaning they do not have the scheduling “problems” facing Borussia. In the two meetings between the sides in 2026, Werder failed to score against the favorites, but on their third attempt, given the current circumstances, it is worth betting specifically on them to do so.