Dusseldorf (dpa) – The 29th match day of the Bundesliga begins with the Friday game VfB Stuttgart against Borussia Dortmund. The other encounters at a glance:
1. FC Cologne – FSV Mainz 05 (Saturday, 3.30 p.m.)
Situation: Cologne, bottom of the table, still has hope of an international starting place, Mainz with two points less theoretically still.
Statistics: In ten Bundesliga games, the Rheinhessen only won once in Cologne – last year with 3:2. FC coach Gisdol was then dismissed.
Personnel: The Cologne team will have to do without six professionals, but have scorer Modeste back on board. St. Juste and Burgzorg are still missing from the guests.
Special: After the appearances in Mönchengladbach and Augsburg, Mainz are playing their third away game within a week. Yield so far: One point.
SpVgg Greuther Fürth – Borussia Mönchengladbach (Saturday, 3.30 p.m.)
Situation: The relegation of taillight Fürth seems certain. The Franks are ten points behind relegation place 16. Gladbach is waiting in midfield – far away from the European Cup and relegation ranks.
Statistics: The cloverleaves have not won any of their eleven competitive games against Borussia. In the first half of the season, the Fürth team lost 4-0.
Personnel: Asta should take the position of injured defender Meyerhöfer for the Franks. At Gladbach, the offensive players Thuram and Hofmann could return to the starting XI.
Special: Fürth’s captain Hrgota meets his former club. The Swede played the first 69 Bundesliga games for the foals.
FC Bayern Munich – FC Augsburg (Saturday, 3.30 p.m.)
Situation: Before the important Champions League second leg against Villarreal, Bayern can take the next step towards their tenth championship title in a row. After two victories so far in their English week at the Allianz Arena, FCA can appear free.
Stats: Thomas Müller is aiming for his 300th league win with FC Bayern. No Bundesliga professional has won so often with a club.
Personnel: Bayern will rotate: Süle and Goretzka come in, Davies gets a break. In addition to Gruezo (yellow card suspension), Augsburg is also missing Pedersen (Corona) for a short time.
Special: Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski played five times against his Polish compatriot and current FCA goalkeeper Rafal Gikiewicz and scored every time.
VfL Wolfsburg – Arminia Bielefeld (Saturday, 3.30 p.m.)
Situation: Both teams are in poor form. Wolfsburg recently suffered three defeats in a row. Arminia only got one point from the last five games.
Statistics: Wolfsburg likes to play against Bielefeld. There have been six wins and one draw from the past seven competitive games.
Personnel: VfL captain Casteels returns to the goal. At Arminia there is still a question mark over Nilsson’s commitment. Vasiliadis is out.
Special: Both coaches finished their DFB coaching training at the top of their class. Kohfeldt in 2015 and Bielefeld’s Kramer two years earlier.
Hertha BSC – 1. FC Union Berlin (Saturday, 6.30 p.m.)
Situation: Hertha slipped back to 17th place after the defeat in Leverkusen. Union, on the other hand, have reached their original goal for the season of 40 points and are now aiming for the European Cup.
Stats: Union can manage their third derby win this season. The Irons won the first leg 2-0. In the round of 16 of the DFB Cup in January, Union beat Hertha 3-2 in the Olympic Stadium.
Personnel: The regular goalkeepers Schwolow and Luthe are missing. At Hertha, Lotka should be between the posts, at Union Rönnow. At Hertha, Stark, Plattenhardt and Pekarik are also questionable.
Special: In the third game this season, Union coach Fischer meets the third Hertha coach. After Dardai and Korkut, Magath now sits on the old lady’s bench.
VfL Bochum – Bayer Leverkusen (Sunday, 3.30 p.m.)
Situation: For the promoted team from Bochum, staying in the league is within reach after the 2-1 win at Hoffenheim. The second best team from the second half of the season from Leverkusen wants to consolidate third place.
Stats: VfL have not won the last five games against the Werkself and have only picked up two points. The guests are also ahead in the overall league record with 25 wins, 12 draws and 16 defeats.
Personnel: Locadia and Antwi-Adjei are missing from the Revierclub. Zoller returns after recovering from cruciate ligament tear. The opponent’s failure list with names like Wirtz, Frimpong, Adli, Fosu-Mensah and Lunew is longer. Striker Azmoun is doubtful with an infection.
Special: VfL took measures for the home game one after the aborted scandal game against Mönchengladbach. The installation of additional video technology, with the help of which potential perpetrators can be convicted quickly, is intended to have a deterrent effect. After intensive discussions, the club management waived collective punishments such as a ban on drinking cups.
Eintracht Frankfurt – SC Freiburg (Sunday, 5.30 p.m.)
Situation: In the fight for an international starting place, Eintracht can move up to three points behind their rivals with a win. Fifth in the table from Freiburg has been waiting for a win for three games.
Statistics: The record from 35 Bundesliga duels is almost balanced. Eintracht won 15 times, Freiburg 13 times. However, the last victory of the Breisgauer in Frankfurt was already five years ago.
Personnel: The Hessians can compete with the best cast. Coach Glasner left open whether he would rotate after the exhausting Europa League game against Barcelona. Freiburg have to do without the injured midfielder Schade.
Special: Frankfurt has been unbeaten for seven competitive games. The last defeat so far was at the end of February against FC Bayern.
RB Leipzig – TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (Sunday, 7.30 p.m.)
Situation: Leipzig is fourth, Hoffenheim sixth. But both teams are already separated by four points. If the weakening Hoffenheim want to play in the Champions League, they must not lose in Leipzig.
Statistics: In eleven matches so far, Leipzig have only scored 15 goals against Hoffenheim. In return, RB suffered their highest home defeat in the Bundesliga with a 5-2 defeat in April 2018.
Personnel: Haidara is absent from Leipzig, but Poulsen and Adams could return. Hoffenheim has many injuries and two new corona cases in Geiger and Rudy. In addition, Raum, Vogt and Akpoguma are locked.
Special: RB coach Tedesco has scored 2.1 points per game in his 14 games so far. This makes him the most successful Leipzig Bundesliga coach for the time being.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:220408-99-850352/2
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