English teenager Jude Bellingham is set to captain Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League for the first time after both Marco Reus and Mats Hummels were ruled out.
Reus and Hummels were in doubt for Wednesday’s clash with Sevilla and did not fly with the team to Spain on Tuesday.
Reus failed to recover in time from an ankle injury sustained against derby rivals Schalke in September, while Hummels will miss his second consecutive game with an illness.
Bellingham, 19, was named in Dortmund’s three-man leadership group in the off season and led his team onto the field for the first time in their 3-2 loss at Cologne on Saturday.
Speaking after the game, Bellingham told the Bundesliga website the honour was “a dream come true.”
“When I first signed for this club, it’s something that I never thought possible – until I met the players.
“(Then) I realised that they could give me the belief to one day be captain.”
Bellingham, currently in his third season with Dortmund, has been a rare mainstay in coach Edin Terzic’s injury-hit side so far, having played every minute of his club’s league, cup and Champions League outings.
Dortmund are currently missing eight first-team regulars, including Hummels, Reus, midfielder Mo Dahoud and American forward Gio Reyna.
Of all the absentees, that of Hummels has been particularly difficult for Dortmund to manage.
Dortmund have conceded three goals in each of the two league games Hummels missed this season, also conceding three after he was subbed off in their loss against Werder Bremen.
The club have only conceded once in the Bundesliga with Hummels on the field since the start of the campaign.
Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel, who has missed five games with injury, has been named in the squad and made the trip to Seville.
