Holstein Kiel vs Borussia Dortmund

Holstein Kiel and Borussia Dortmund have met twice in the DFB-Pokal to date - BVB won 4-0 away in the quarter-finals in 2011-12 and 5-0 at home in the semi-finals in 2020-21. BVB have been winless in their last three first-leg matches against Bundesliga newcomers (D1 L2): 0-1 at RB Leipzig, 1-3 at Union Berlin and 2-2 at home against 1. FC Heidenheim.

Borussia Dortmund is playing its weakest Bundesliga season in seven years with 25 points after 16 games, including 25 points in 2017-18. BVB has won just one of its last five Bundesliga games (D3 L1) - 3-1 at VfL Wolfsburg in its last away game in the Bundesliga, which was also its first away win of the season.

BVB started the new calendar year with a Bundesliga defeat for the first time in 21 years (in 2004, they lost 0-1 at home to FC Schalke). The last time BVB started a calendar year with two defeats was in 2000 (0-1 at home against Kaiserslautern, 0-1 away at VfL Wolfsburg).

Only two Bundesliga newcomers had fewer points after their first 16 games in the top flight than Holstein Kiel this season (8, like Greuther Fürth in 2012-13): In the 1965-66 season, Tasmania Berlin had picked up the equivalent of just four points at the time of comparison, and in the 1974-75 season, Tennis Borussia Berlin the equivalent of seven.

With 41 goals conceded, Holstein Kiel have the weakest defence in this Bundesliga season - the Storks are the first league newcomers since Stuttgarter Kickers (1988/89) to concede 41 goals in their first 16 Bundesliga games (the Kickers also conceded 41 back then). The Kickers were also the last Bundesliga debutants, to only keep a clean sheet in their first 16 Bundesliga games like Kiel this season.