Sevilla seek Europa League lift

Sevilla hold the slight upper hand heading into the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan contest, lying second behind already-qualified Paris Saint-Germain in Group J and a point above Dortmund in third spot. A draw would therefore see the 2006 and 2007 UEFA Cup winners progress through to the last 32 at the expense of the German outfit, but to do that Sevilla will need to break their recent miserable run of form and end Dortmund's own winning streak. Sunday's 3-1 home loss to second-bottom Almeria in La Liga was Sevilla's fifth successive defeat in all competitions and their third on the trot at the Sanchez Pizjuan. It also dropped Gregorio Manzano's side down to 11th in the Primera Division standings and closer to the relegation places than the Champions League spots in terms of points. Defender Julien Escude said: "It's a difficult situation and one that's new for more or less all the players. "We have to take it game by game and the next one is against Dortmund. "We only need one victory to help us and that could happen on Wednesday. We've already beaten them away, where we defended and suffered a lot and came away with three points against an opponent who were in very good form. "We need points and confidence, and for this we need to work hard and calmly, even though all the talk surrounding us is of pressure and 'finals'." While Sevilla are freefalling down the Primera Division table in Spain, Dortmund are flying high at the top of the Bundesliga standings, lying a massive 11 points clear at the summit. Dortmund have won their last seven games in all competitions and need an eighth to remain in European competition beyond Christmas. "We want to win, and then we really can celebrate the festive season," said the club's general manager Hans-Joachim Watzke. Dortmund's future in Europe looked bleak after back-to-back draws with PSG left them relying on results elsewhere to keep them in with a chance of still qualifying for the last 32. A win over Karpaty Lviv a fortnight ago and PSG's win over Sevilla has given them this opportunity in Andalucia and defender Mats Hummels is confident that they are going to take it. "I am absolutely convinced that we will win in Sevilla and go through," he told Kicker magazine. "We wanted this final and we now have it. "Our home game against Sevilla was one of our best games of the season, but that did not come through with the result. "Certainly we have the chance and the quality to succeed in Spain." Dortmund have not lost a single match away from their Westfalenstadion home this season and that will fill them with confidence for Wednesday night. However, coach Jurgen Klopp may be without his influential midfielder Nuri Sahin, who picked up a groin strain in the 2-0 win over Werder Bremen at the weekend. Antonio Da Silva is a candidate to replace him while reported Real Madrid target Lucas Barrios should be fit to lead the Dortmund attack with Robert Lewandowski on standby to replace him should he not be passed fit.