Dortmund's stars to sit out PAOK match as Bayern showdown looms

Berlin - Borussia Dortmund left Mats Hummels, Shinji Kagawa, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Sokratis, and Ilkay Gundogan behind for Thursday's Europa League clash at PAOK Salonika ahead of this weekend's Bayern Munich clash.

Second-placed Dortmund are at Pep Guardiola's German league leaders Sunday with the hosts entering the Allianz Arena clash with a four-point lead.

Bayern won all seven of its league games so far this season, while unbeaten Dortmund dropped points by drawing their last two matches.

Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel left his captain Hummels behind, also opting to rest playmaker Kagawa and top scorer Aubameyang, who scored in each of the team's seven games so far.

"We need to keep an eye on the load put on the players," Tuchel said, as Dortmund will have played 14 games in 65 days by the time they play Bayern.

New signings Gonzalo Castro, South Korea's Park Joo-Ho, and Belgian rising star Adnan Januzaj are set to start as Dortmund hunt for their second straight win in their Europa League group.