How Borussia Dortmund could line up against Schalke 04

Borussia Dortmund will be looking for their fifth straight Bundesliga victory when they welcome Schalke 04 to Signal Iduna Park this weekend.

Germany's top flight has been on hold for more than two months due to the coronavirus outbreak, but the action will resume this weekend, and Dortmund will enter Saturday's match knowing that a win would see them close the gap on league leaders Bayern Munich to a single point.

Lucien Favre's side impressed domestically before play was called to a halt, but they bowed out of the Champions League in the round of 16 with a 2-0 defeat at Paris Saint-Germain on March 11.

Here, Sports Mole looks at how BVB could line up for the Revierderby.

Out: Axel Witsel (muscle), Emre Can (muscle), Dan-Axel Zagadou (knee), Nico Schulz (muscle), Marco Reus (muscle) Doubtful: Jadon Sancho (muscle), Achraf Hakimi (muscle)

Favre confirmed on Thursday that neither Axel Witsel nor Emre Can would be available for Saturday's contest, while Dan-Axel Zagadou, Nico Schulz and Marco Reus are also on the sidelines.

Jadon Sancho and Achraf Hakimi should shake off muscular concerns to feature, though, and the former is expected to be part of a front three with Erling Braut Haaland and Thorgan Hazard.

Sancho's future remains the subject of much speculation, and the England international will be looking to add to the 17 goals and 19 assists that he has already managed at club level this season.

Julian Brandt and Thomas Delaney should start as the midfield two in a 3-4-3 formation, with Mats Hummels and Raphael Guerreiro also featuring in the starting XI.

Favre will have to assess the fitness of each individual player before making a final decision on team selection, although there are not expected to be many surprises.

Manuel Akanji will hope to be the player to benefit from Zagadou's absence in a defensive position, although Mateu Morey is also an option for BVB.

> Click here to see how Schalke could line up for this contest