WATCH Borussia Dortmund v Wolfsburg LIVE on beIN SPORTS | Sign up to take advantage of our 7-day FREE TRIAL here | AU | NZ

Dortmund was sat as low as 11th on the Bundesliga table earlier this year, but has turned its season around since Kovac took charge in February.

It now sits in sixth, three points behind fourth-placed Freiburg, which currently occupies the final UEFA Champions League qualifying spot.

"We're within striking distance again," Kovac said ahead of the match against Wolfsburg.

"The game is very important. We're focusing on our opponents because we're dependent on the other teams, and we have to do our homework.

"It's about showing the same energy as in the last few games. If we play our game like we have in recent weeks, I'm convinced that we can unleash a force with the crowd that Wolfsburg will find difficult to counter."

Dortmund has collected 19 points from nine games since the start of matchday 23, winning six of those. Only Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen have claimed more during this period with 20 each.

Thirteen of those points have come in the past five games, which has seen Dortmund climb the table, with three games left to salvage something from a difficult campaign.

If not the UEFA Champions League, it can still qualify for the UEFA Europa League, with RB Leipzig, which faces Bayern this weekend, in fifth, one point above Dortmund.

Kovac also managed Wolfsburg between 2022 and 2024, and the Croatian is wary of the Lower Saxony side, even though Dortmund has a superb record against it at home.

Dortmund has not lost in its past 11 Bundesliga home games against Wolfsburg, winning nine of those, a run that dates back to 2012. Wolfsburg has scored just one goal at Signal Iduna Park since the 2016-2017 season.

"They're dangerous from set pieces and in transition. We have to be careful there," Kovac said.

"I'm looking forward to seeing everyone [at Wolfsburg] again, but we also know the importance of the game. Friendships will be put aside for 90 minutes."