Arsenal and Dortmund

The only score still to be settled in Group D of the Champions League concerns which of Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund will finish top. The Bundesliga side is in pole position on 12 points and needs a win to make sure they top the group. A draw from their last match against Anderlecht would also be enough for Dortmund to win the group, unless Arsenal wins by more than six goals against Galatasaray.

Arsenal has already extended its formidable record of reaching the Champions League knockout stages to a 15th consecutive season but the London club has been group runner-up in three of its last four campaigns, earning Round of 16 matches against Bayern Munich twice and Barcelona. The Gunners lost all three encounters and will be keen to ensure an easier passage this time.

Still, Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger (pictured above) may choose to rest star forward Alexis Sanchez on Tuesday after saying recently that the Chile international was "in the red zone" of his fitness levels.

Gündogan is back

Although Dortmund has been struggling in the Bundesliga, regularly flirting with the relegation zone this season, the team won its last domestic encounter with a nailbiting 1-0 victory over Hoffenheim. The game saw the return of llkay Gündogan to the scoring list, after a long lay-off with a back injury. The Turkish-German midfielder scored a rare header and also provided important creative impetus during the game.

"I just have to get used now again to the full load, but my back is fine," Gündogan said. Defender Mats Hummels described Gundogan as a "fantastic player" who until the injury was “one of the best in his role."

Dortmund coach Jürgen Klopp left out goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller, Germany's back-up keeper in Brazil, in the Hoffenheim game. Instead, young Australian Mitch Langerack played his 12th Bundesliga match, notching his 10th win whilst keeping a clean sheet.

Klopp has been quiet about the future but Langerak, Weidenfeller's long-time understudy, could end up with a permanent promotion. On the weekend, Weidenfeller said it was a coaching decision "I have to accept."

Leverkusen, Bayern and Schalke

The fates of Germany's other top clubs vary going into their last round of group stage matches in Europe's premier club competition. Leverkusen, like Dortmund, also need a victory to guarantee first place in Group C when they play Benfica in Lisbon on Tuesday. Currently top of the group, the German side is already guaranteed progression to the knockout stage.

On Wednesday, Bayern Munich can use their game against CSKA Moscow to test some of their less experienced squad members on the European stage. Bayern are seven points clear of the rest with the only blemish on a perfect record inflicted by Manchester City’s stunning 3-2 comeback win in the last round of matches.

Schalke, meanwhile, still have an outside chance of progressing when they travel to Maribor. The Royal Blues will have to beat their Slovenian opponents and hope that Chelsea beat Sporting in London if they are to steal second place in Group G and progress to the knockout phase.

DW will have live coverage of all of this week's Champions League matches, with German involvement at www.dw.de/sports. Coverage starts at 19:15 UTC on Tuesday, December 9.

al/pwh (AFP, AP)