Dortmund host unbeaten Betis with Guirassy leading the chase

Real Betis have won all three of their Champions League games and arrive in Dortmund fifth in the league phase. Borussia Dortmund are three points behind, with Serhou Guirassy already on four European goals. Their first UEFA meeting will test whether Betis can play through the home pressure and keep the striker away from the most dangerous areas.

Borussia Dortmund returned from Munich with a 2-2 draw against Bayern after Guirassy and Fábio Silva scored in the second half. Betis also took a result into their European trip: Marc Bartra and Pablo Fornals scored in a 2-1 home win against Málaga. Both teams have attacking routes to the goal, but the table gives this game a sharper edge. A home win would put Dortmund level with Betis on nine points after four league-phase fixtures.

Competition: 2026/27 UEFA Champions League, league phase, matchday four.
Fixture: Borussia Dortmund v Real Betis, with Dortmund at home.
Kick-off: Wednesday 4 November, 21:00 CET in Dortmund (20:00 UTC; 20:00 GMT in the UK).
Venue: Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund, Germany.

Betis have found more than one way to win

Betis opened with 3-2 victories over Lille and Porto, then beat Feyenoord 1-0. Nine points from those three matches have taken Manuel Pellegrini's team to fifth in the 36-club table. The narrow win over Feyenoord matters as much as the earlier scoring bursts: it showed Betis could protect a smaller margin. Wednesday's challenge is to do that against a Dortmund side with a prolific centre-forward and a crowd that can turn sustained pressure into a difficult spell for visitors.

Dortmund beat Villarreal 3-2, lost 1-0 to Bodø/Glimt and defeated Sabah 2-1. They sit 13th with six points. UEFA credits Guirassy with four goals in three appearances, and his goal against Bayern on Saturday was another reminder of his ability to finish a move before defenders can recover. Betis cannot plan solely around him, however. Fábio Silva's late equaliser in Munich gave Dortmund a second scorer in a game that had threatened to slip away.

Against Bayern, Dortmund started Gregor Kobel in goal, with Waldemar Anton and Nico Schlotterbeck in defence, Felix Nmecha and Jobe Bellingham in midfield, and Guirassy up front. That selection provides recent evidence of the team's options, not a confirmed starting eleven for Wednesday. Betis used Álvaro Vallés; Héctor Bellerín, Bartra, Natan and Fran García; Marc Roca and Fornals; Rodrigo Riquelme, Isco and Abde Ezzalzouli; and Troy Parrott against Málaga. Antony came on after the interval. Isco and Fornals can receive between opposing lines, while Abde offers a run into space on the left.

Availability and the contest between the lines

UEFA's predicted-line-up guide, published on 2 November, offers provisional availability information for this fixture. It is not a confirmed squad announcement, and updates before kick-off may change the picture.

Borussia Dortmund

Kauã Prates: listed as out with a muscular problem in UEFA's guide.
Doubtful: UEFA names no players in this category. The club has not issued a match-specific medical report for the European fixture.

Real Betis

Cucho Hernández: listed as out with a calf problem in UEFA's guide.
Junior Firpo: listed as out with a muscular problem in the same guide.
Doubtful: UEFA names no players in this category. The club has not issued a match-specific medical report for the European fixture.

Bartra scored for Betis against Málaga and previously played for Dortmund. He will know the setting, though the central defensive job is shared. If Betis' back line stretches to cover the wings, Guirassy can look for gaps between defenders. If it retreats too deeply, Dortmund may be able to recover possession near the box and keep the away side under pressure.

At the other end, Betis will want Isco to turn behind the first line of Dortmund's press. Fornals can then look for Abde's run or Parrott's movement ahead of him. Both full-back positions will matter: Dortmund need width to create room for Guirassy, while Betis must avoid giving the ball away with too many players ahead of it. The precise match-ups will depend on the line-ups announced on Wednesday.

This is the clubs' first meeting in UEFA competition, but several of the people involved have crossed paths with Dortmund before. Pellegrini coached Málaga when Dortmund eliminated the Spanish club in the 2012/13 Champions League quarter-finals. UEFA records 69 Champions League matches in his coaching career before this round. Bartra spent time with Dortmund; Isco faced the German club while playing for Málaga, Real Madrid and Sevilla. Those connections add context without offering a shortcut to a prediction.

How to watch Borussia Dortmund v Real Betis

Venue and kick-off: Signal Iduna Park, Wednesday 4 November, 20:00 UTC.

United States

Time: Wednesday 4 November, 3:00 pm EST / noon PST.
TV: Paramount+'s fixture listing does not specify a linear channel.
Streaming: Paramount+ lists this match live for subscribers.

United Kingdom

Time: Wednesday 4 November, 8:00 pm GMT.
TV: Virgin Media's TNT Sports schedule lists Dortmund v Betis; it does not specify a numbered channel on that schedule.
Streaming: the match-specific operator listing consulted does not confirm a separate streaming destination.

Australia

Time: Thursday 5 November, 7:00 am AEDT in Sydney and Melbourne / 4:00 am AWST in Perth.
TV: Stan Sport's match listing does not name a linear channel.
Streaming: Stan Sport lists the fixture, with coverage from 6:55 am AEDT.

Betis have the perfect Champions League record to protect; Dortmund have a home opportunity to erase the three-point gap. The first clue may come from where the away side can receive the ball. If Isco and Fornals escape the press, Betis can make Dortmund defend facing its own goal. If the home side pins them back, Guirassy's movement in the box becomes the central problem.