Borussia Dortmund Formation: Kovač's 3-4-2-1

Borussia Dortmund formation — tactical board

How Kovač's 3-4-2-1 is organised

Out of possession the 3-4-2-1 becomes a 5-2-2-1. The wing-backs drop in alongside the back three, the two tens step across to screen the opposition pivot, and the midfield pair holds a short distance in front of the centre-backs. In possession the same eleven becomes a 3-2-5: Daniel Svensson and Julian Ryerson climb onto the touchlines while the back three stays deliberately narrow in the middle third. Because width is delegated entirely to the wing-backs, the centre-backs never have to spread, and that is what makes the central block so hard to play through.

Build-up starts with Gregor Kobel and the back three, and it leans left. Nico Schlotterbeck is the main progressor, either carrying past the first line or hitting a diagonal into the space behind an opposition full-back. Ramy Bensebaïni steps out on the outside of him to give the left side a second passer, while Waldemar Anton holds the right and organises the covering slide behind Ryerson. Felix Nmecha drops in to offer the third angle, and his arrival is the cue for Jobe Bellingham to leave the pivot and carry into the final third.

The final third belongs to the double ten. Julian Brandt and Maximilian Beier interchange constantly, one dropping to receive on the half-turn while the other pushes up to form a front two with Guirassy. The shape is built for directness rather than for long spells of possession: Dortmund regain the ball in a compact middle third, look immediately for Brandt turning into the left half-space or Beier arriving off the right, and often finish the move with a cross from a wing-back. Guirassy is the reference point for all of it.

The tactical units

1. Goalkeeper

   On the pitch: Gregor Kobel

   Kobel is Dortmund's first-choice goalkeeper, and the compact block in front of him is built to keep opponents out of the penalty area rather than to win the ball high. He is a shot-stopper first rather than a roaming sweeper-keeper, holding a conventional starting depth behind a back line that does not push a reckless offside trap. In possession his job is modest and specific: a short first pass into the back three, usually to his left, and a long ball into the channels when the press arrives.

2. Back three

   On the pitch: Ramy Bensebaïni, Nico Schlotterbeck, Waldemar Anton

   A narrow trio, its passing weighted left. Schlotterbeck is the passer and the vice-captain, trusted to carry forward and hit the diagonal that skips midfield; Bensebaïni, a left-back by trade, covers the left and steps out with the ball; Anton takes the right and manages the covering slide when Ryerson advances. The trio stays narrow by design, congesting the middle and leaving the flanks to the wing-backs. Anton made thirty-two league starts to Schlotterbeck's twenty-eight and Bensebaïni's fifteen, so the left of the three is the least settled slot.

3. Midfield four

   On the pitch: Daniel Svensson, Felix Nmecha, Jobe Bellingham, Julian Ryerson

   The four is really two jobs. Svensson and Ryerson are full-pitch wing-backs, tucking into a five as defenders and providing every yard of attacking width, with Yan Couto an option on the right. Nmecha and Bellingham are a staggered pair rather than a flat double pivot: Nmecha screens and sweeps in front of the centre-backs, while Bellingham wins second balls and carries into the final third. Marcel Sabitzer made one more league start than Bellingham in the same central role, so that slot is shared rather than owned.

4. Double ten

   On the pitch: Julian Brandt, Maximilian Beier

   The freest players in the side. Brandt works from the left half-space, dropping off the front line to receive and turning play towards the wing-back; Beier plays higher on the right as a second striker. Both drift, swap sides and drop to receive, which is what stops the shape becoming a rigid 3-4-3. Neither slot is settled: Beier made twenty-four league starts and Brandt seventeen, with Karim Adeyemi on fifteen and Carney Chukwuemeka also used in the same two positions.

5. Centre-forward

   On the pitch: Serhou Guirassy

   Guirassy is the fixed point of the attack. He scored 17 Bundesliga goals and 22 in all competitions, third in the league's scoring charts behind Harry Kane and Deniz Undav. He plays as a penalty-box finisher rather than a link man. Defensively he sets the press by closing the ball-side centre-back, and in possession he occupies both centre-backs so the tens can attack the space in front of them.

Key player relationships

Gregor Kobel → Nico Schlotterbeck — Builds play through

Kobel's first pass is short and usually to his left, into Schlotterbeck. Dortmund would rather invite pressure onto the centre-back who can break a line with a pass than clear the ball, because a Schlotterbeck carry or vertical pass is what turns a goal kick into an attack.

Ramy Bensebaïni → Daniel Svensson — Steps out for

Bensebaïni pushes up the outside of the back three once Svensson is high, giving the left side two players capable of delivering a cross. It also frees Schlotterbeck to stay central and cover the space the wing-back has vacated behind him.

Nico Schlotterbeck ↔ Felix Nmecha — Links play

The hinge of the whole build-up. Nmecha drops between the centre-backs to receive, Schlotterbeck steps forward past him, and the two exchange until one can play into a ten. When the opposition blocks that exchange, Dortmund go long instead of forcing it.

Nico Schlotterbeck → Julian Brandt — Frees

Schlotterbeck's diagonal skips the midfield entirely. It is aimed at Brandt in the left half-space, behind the opposition's midfield line and in front of their back four, and it is one of the few genuinely vertical options the back three has when the route through the pivot is closed.

Waldemar Anton → Julian Ryerson — Covers

With Ryerson high on the right, Anton slides across to become an effective right-back and the other two centre-backs shuffle with him. That covering habit is why Dortmund can commit both wing-backs and still meet a counter-attack with a settled back line.

Daniel Svensson → Julian Brandt — Overlaps

Brandt drifts inside into the left half-space and Svensson runs past him on the outside. The overlap forces the defender to choose between the man on the ball and the runner beyond him, and it is the pattern Dortmund's left side is arranged to produce.

Daniel Svensson → Serhou Guirassy — Supplies crosses

Once Svensson is beyond his marker the delivery is aimed at Guirassy attacking the penalty area. The cross is an intended finish rather than a fallback when a move stalls, which is why the wing-backs are asked to reach the byline instead of turning back inside.

Felix Nmecha → Ramy Bensebaïni — Screens

Nmecha holds the zone directly in front of Bensebaïni, which is what lets the left centre-back step out with the ball at all. He closes the gap between the lines on that side and sweeps loose balls before they reach the defence.

Felix Nmecha ↔ Jobe Bellingham — Rotates with

The pivot is staggered rather than flat. One drops to receive from the back three while the other pushes into the space behind the tens, and they trade those jobs within a single possession, so there is always a spare man deep and a runner high.

Jobe Bellingham → Maximilian Beier — Supports

Bellingham is the second wave on that side. When Beier drops off or turns inside, Bellingham steps into the space the ten has vacated, which gives the move a runner arriving from deep rather than another body already inside the block.

Julian Ryerson → Maximilian Beier — Holds width for

Ryerson stays pinned to the touchline so Beier can play as an inside forward rather than a winger. The wing-back holds the opposition full-back in place, and Beier attacks the gap that opens between that full-back and the nearest centre-back.

Julian Brandt ↔ Serhou Guirassy — Presses with

The press is set by these two. Guirassy closes the ball-side centre-back and Brandt takes the pass out to the full-back, with the second ten and a midfielder stepping up behind them. It is short and front-loaded rather than a full-pitch chase.

Julian Brandt ↔ Maximilian Beier — Switches with

Brandt starts on the left and Beier on the right, but both have played the opposite side and they trade freely during a match. The switch moves Beier into a closer partnership with Guirassy and gives Brandt the ball in the right half-space, where the pivot can find him.

Maximilian Beier ↔ Serhou Guirassy — Combines with

In the last third the tens collapse towards the striker and Beier becomes a second forward outright, playing off Guirassy's back, taking lay-offs and attacking the far post. It is why Dortmund's 3-4-2-1 often finishes moves looking like a 3-5-2.

Tactical strengths

• The narrow back three plus two tens screening centrally leaves very little space between the lines through the middle of the pitch.
• Delegating all width to the wing-backs lets the centre-backs stay compact even when the team is committed to attack.
• Schlotterbeck's carrying and vertical passing give Dortmund a route out of pressure that does not depend on the pivot being free.
• Guirassy is a specialist penalty-box finisher and the shape is built to serve him crosses, cut-backs and second balls.
• Regains in the middle third turn into shots quickly, because the two tens and Bellingham are already ahead of the ball when it is won.

Tactical weaknesses

• With both wing-backs high, a switch into the flank they have left asks the back three to defend a wide area unaided.
• If an opponent plays through or around Nmecha, the gap between pivot and back three is large and the tens are too advanced to recover it.
• Against a deep block the two tens crowd the same zone as Guirassy, and the attack narrows into repetitive crossing.
• Goalscoring leans heavily on Guirassy, and the shape offers no second natural centre-forward when he is absent.
• Without Schlotterbeck the build-up loses its main progressor, and no other member of the back three carries the ball forward in the same way.

Famous tactical characteristics

The narrow back three

The three centre-backs stay close together in the middle third instead of spreading towards the touchlines. It concentrates bodies where most chances are created, allows constant cover behind whichever defender steps out, and reflects Kovač's long-standing emphasis on defensive stability over a high, aggressive line. Dortmund conceded fewer league goals than any other side in 2025/26.

Wing-backs as the only source of width

Svensson and Ryerson are the whole flank. They are the fifth defender in a 5-2-2-1 and the widest attackers in a 3-2-5, and no other player is asked to hug a touchline. The arrangement gives the tens permission to live in the half-spaces, but it also means a suspension or injury to a wing-back changes the team's shape rather than just its personnel. Ryerson finished 2025/26 as the squad's leading assist provider in the Bundesliga and in all competitions.

Building through Schlotterbeck

The first phase is routed deliberately through the centre-back most comfortable on the ball. Schlotterbeck receives from Kobel, invites an opponent towards him, then either carries past the first line or plays a diagonal into the left half-space. Nmecha dropping in gives him a safe outlet and Bensebaïni stepping out gives him a wide one, so the press has three problems rather than one.

A short, front-loaded press

Dortmund press in a compact five rather than chasing across the whole pitch. Guirassy takes the ball-side centre-back, a ten covers the pass to the full-back, and the second ten and a midfielder step up to seal the inside. If the first wave is beaten the block drops rather than scrambling, which keeps the transition risk low.

The Doppelzehn behind Guirassy

The two attacking midfielders are the least scripted part of the side. Brandt and Beier swap sides, one drops to receive while the other joins the striker, and either can end up as a second forward. That fluidity is what gives the attack a second route when Guirassy is marked, and what turns a conservative defensive structure into a forward-moving one.

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Related formations

• Bayern Munich Formation and Tactics under Kompany

  The Klassiker rivals who took the title sixteen points clear, and the benchmark Kovač's back three is built against.

• Liverpool Formation and Tactics: Slot's 2025/26 4-2-3-1

  A contrasting press-first side under Arne Slot, set against Dortmund's compact mid-block and vertical counters.

• Manchester United Formation and Carrick's Tactics

  Another side whose build-up runs through a double pivot, but from a four-man defensive base rather than a three.

Frequently asked questions

What formation does Borussia Dortmund play?

Dortmund play a 3-4-2-1 under Niko Kovač, the base shape of his 2025/26 side. It defends as a 5-2-2-1 with the wing-backs dropping in alongside the back three, and attacks as a 3-2-5, with two attacking midfielders behind Serhou Guirassy.

Does Borussia Dortmund play with a back three?

Yes. Kovač's Dortmund defend with three central defenders plus two wing-backs, which becomes a back five without the ball. He was appointed in late January 2025 with the club eleventh, finished that season fourth, then conceded fewer league goals than any other side in 2025/26.

Who plays as Borussia Dortmund's two number tens?

Maximilian Beier and Julian Brandt are Dortmund's two attacking midfielders in this shape. Beier made twenty-four league starts in 2025/26 and Brandt seventeen, but neither slot was settled: Karim Adeyemi (fifteen) and Carney Chukwuemeka also played in the two roles. Brandt and Adeyemi both left Dortmund in July 2026.