Dortmund aims to bring some of its Champions League success to disastrous Bundesliga campaign

DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — The two German teams in the Champions League quarterfinals are having very different Bundesliga seasons.

While Bayern Munich is eight points clear at the top and confirmed its domestic supremacy with a 5-0 aggregate win over Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, Borussia Dortmund is 10th and will likely need a big late-season surge to qualify for next season's Champions League.

Beating Lille in the Champions League on Wednesday eased some of the pressure on new coach Niko Kovac but Dortmund takes on Leipzig on Saturday with both teams desperate for a win.

— Dortmund's game against Leipzig on Saturday is a crucial test for Leipzig, too. Two wins from 10 Bundesliga games since the new year have seen Marco Rose's team slide to sixth.

— Bayern's Champions League exertions took their toll last week in a shock 3-2 home loss to Bochum. A trip to Union Berlin on Saturday is another tricky test, given Union surprised Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1 last week.

— Leverkusen has lost three games in a row for the first time under coach Xabi Alonso. The injury-hit squad can turn things around with a win on Sunday over Stuttgart, itself on a four-game losing run.

— When Manuel Neuer hurt himself celebrating last week, it gave 21-year-old Jonas Urbig an opportunity as Bayern goalkeeper. The loss to Bochum last week was a rocky start but Urbig won praise for some solid saves against Leverkusen.

— Michy Batshuayi's first Bundesliga goal in seven years wasn't enough as Frankfurt lost to Union last week. Frankfurt could need more goals from the new signing to halt a slide since Omar Marmoush left for Manchester City. Frankfurt plays Bochum on Sunday.

— The pressure is on Stuttgart striker Deniz Undav after seven Bundesliga games without scoring. Undav was a star last season as Stuttgart finished second but now risks being dropped.

— Star attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz is a big absence for Leverkusen with an ankle ligament injury. Defender Mario Hermoso was sent for scans on his shoulder after the Bayern loss, while defender Edmond Tapsoba and midfielder Nathan Tella are doubtful to recover from injuries for Sunday.

— Joshua Kimmich looks set to extend his contract at Bayern after all after a contract offer was reportedly withdrawn last month in frustration at the long-running talks. Kimmich said on Tuesday he was looking forward to “getting the ball over the line.”

— Serbia defender Milos Veljkovic will leave Werder Bremen for Red Star Belgrade after nine years, Bremen said on Tuesday.

— Holstein Kiel captain Lewis Holtby is set to leave as a free agent.

“It's difficult and we aren't satisfied either. It's hard for us to get a result like this in the Bundesliga almost every week and play our best in the Champions League. We're trying everything to make it work in the Bundesliga too.” — Dortmund forward Karim Adeyemi.

“I won't surf on a hype wave, no chance ... My focus is absolutely on the Union Berlin game on Saturday and nothing is won until it's won.” — Bayern coach Vincent Kompany.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Bayern's goalkeeper Jonas Urbig holds the ball during the Champions League round of 16 second leg soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Frankfurt's Michy Batshuayi, center, celebrates with teammates Far's Chaibi, right and Nathaniel Brown after scoring a goal, during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Eintracht Frankfurt and 1. FC Union Berlin at Deutsche Bank Park, in Frankfurt, Germany, Sunday, March 9, 2025. (Arne Dedert/dpa via AP)

Leipzig's Xavi Simons, front, reacts during the German Bundesliga soccer match between RB Leipzig and FSV Mainz 05 in Leipzig, Germany, Saturday, March 1, 2025. (Jan Woitas/dpa via AP)

Leverkusen's head coach Xabi Alonso reacts during the Champions League round of 16 second leg soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Bayern's head coach Vincent Kompany greets fans prior the Champions League round of 16 second leg soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Dortmund players celebrate after a goal during the Champions League round of 16 second leg soccer match between Lille and Borussia Dortmund in Villeneuve-d'Ascq , Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine denied Moscow's claims that a Ukrainian drone struck the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, as Kyiv on Sunday launched new strikes overnight on Russian energy sites.

Ukraine’s General Staff said Ukrainian drones struck the Saratov oil refinery in southwestern Russia, causing a large-scale fire. It said the extent of the damage was being clarified, and claimed the refinery has been supplying Moscow’s war effort.

The refinery belongs to Russia’s state oil enterprise, Rosneft. Local Russian Gov. Roman Busargin, said Ukrainian drones had damaged civilian infrastructure, but did not immediately give details. Astra, an independent Russian news channel, said an oil refinery was on fire in the city of Saratov.

Ukraine has stepped up its attacks on Russia’s oil and gas facilities in recent months, arguing the energy sector both funds and directly fuels Moscow’s more than four-year invasion.

“Tonight, our soldiers applied Ukraine’s long-range sanctions against an oil refinery in Saratov, Russia — approximately 700 kilometers (435 miles) from the front line. A significant achievement,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on social media later on Sunday.

Drone debris also set fire to a fuel depot in Russia’s southwestern Rostov region, which borders Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine, Gov. Yuriy Slyusar reported on Telegram on Sunday. He said residents of nearby homes were evacuated.

Ukraine's General Staff on Sunday confirmed its forces were behind the strike on the facility in the town of Matveev Kurgan. Local authorities said a drone strike on the depot had caused a large-scale fire across a wide area.

According to its General Staff, Ukraine ​also struck the Lazarevo pumping station in Russia's Kirov region northeast of Moscow, more than 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) from Ukrainian-controlled land. The station helps ship Russian oil ​from Siberia to Belarus.

Regional Gov. Alexander Sokolov said drones had hit ​a facility in the Kirov region, without giving further details.

Kyiv denied that a Ukrainian drone struck the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Europe’s largest.

Russia’s state nuclear energy company, Rosatom, said on Saturday that the drone exploded after tearing a hole in the wall of a turbine hall. Rosatom’s CEO Alexei Likhachev accused Ukraine of a deliberate attack.

“This afternoon, a Ukrainian kamikaze combat drone struck the turbine hall building of Power Unit No. 6, resulting in a detonation,” Likhachev said. He added there was no damage to main equipment.

Ukraine’s military said it did not target or strike the plant, describing the Russian claim as “yet another propaganda ploy.” A military statement said that it adheres to international humanitarian law and is aware of the "consequences of any actions targeting nuclear facilities.”

“Along the relevant section of the front line, there was no active fighting at the time of the incident, and no weapons were used,” it added.

Rafael Grossi, head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog — the International Atomic Energy Agency — expressed “serious concern” in a post on X following the incident.

The IAEA said in a statement Sunday that its inspectors at the plant “observed damage to the exterior of a turbine building” that was “consistent with the impact" of a drone. It gave no details of where the drone may have come from, but said radiation levels at the site remained normal.

“During a site walk down, the team saw damage to a metal access hatch located several levels up in the building, as well as a few pieces of debris and burned optical fiber remains on the ground," the agency said in a post on X. It added that its inspectors had requested access to the inside of the turbine hall for further examination.

Russian forces captured the Zaporizhzhia plant in the early weeks of the war, and it remains close to the front lines in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, one of four Russia has formally annexed despite lacking full military control or international recognition for its actions.

The nuclear plant has repeatedly come under fire since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, sparking fears of a nuclear accident. Moscow and Kyiv have blamed each other for targeting the plant.

Elsewhere, Ukraine’s air force said Sunday that it had shot down 212 of 299 drones launched by Russia overnight. It said 14 drones had reached their targets, while drone debris fell in five locations.

A truck driver died early on Sunday as drones hit a parking lot in Ukraine's northern Chernihiv region, according to local administration head Vyacheslav Chaus.

Russian drones struck the city of Dnipro and an oil refinery in Ukraine’s Rivne region, causing fires, authorities said. The head of the Dnipropetrovsk region, of which Dnipro is the capital, said later on Sunday that one person was killed and nine were injured in Russian attacks earlier in the day on various parts of the province.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Servicemen of Ukraine's defense intelligence set up the Peklo (Hell) missile drone against Russian in an undisclosed location in Ukraine late Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Servicemen of Ukraine's defense intelligence set up drones against Russian in an undisclosed location in Ukraine late Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)