Bundesliga Weekend Preview: Round 14

Friday 21st November (all times local)

20:30  Karlsruhe – Borussia Dortmund 

Saturday 22nd November

15:30  Bayern Munich – Energie Cottbus 
15:30  Schalke – Bor.Mönchengladbach
15:30  Wolfsburg - Stuttgart
15:30  Eintracht Frankfurt - Hannover

Sunday 23rd November
17:00  Hamburg – Werder Bremen    

Karlsruhe – Borussia Dortmund   

The weekend action kicks off on Friday at the Wildparkstadion, as struggling Karlsruhe host Borussia Dortmund. KSC’s 1-0 away defeat to Energie Cottbus last week was their sixth loss in their last seven games and Edmund Becker’s side are now down in 16th spot.   

The pressure is already on and anything other than a win will have even more pressure heaped upon them. They will once again be without the injured Maik Franz, while it appears that Kapllani and Iashvili could come into the team for Joshua Kennedy and Bradley Carnell.  

Dortmund enjoyed a great afternoon last Saturday beating Frankfurt 4-0. That result sees them sixth and they will be looking to break into the top five with three points against Karlsruhe.   

Jürgen Klopp is still not sure whether Sebastian Kehl will be fit to start, so Tinga is on stand-by. Mohamed Zidan has been suffering with a stomach infection and as such is a doubt, but Mats Hummels is poised to return to the squad after a three week lay-off.    

Bayern Munich – Energie Cottbus   

Bayern Munich’s winning streak was brought to a surprise end last weekend when they let slip a 2-0 lead against Mönchengladbach. Before that, the Bavarians had notched up five consecutive league wins. The Allianz Arena faithful will be demanding a return to winning ways against bottom side Cottbus.  

Jürgen Klinsmann could well start with the same XI who began against Gladbach, but much will depend on the fitness of those who were on international duty.  

Their 1-0 win over Karlsruhe last weekend was not enough to take Cottbus off the bottom of the table, but it was a step in the right direction for Bojan Prasnikar’s side.   

Energie Cottbus are likely to line-up more defensively against Bayern, with Sörensen perhaps coming in for Iliev. Last week’s goalscoring substitute Jelic will once again have to settle for a place on the bench.  

Schalke – Bor. Mönchengladbach  

Schalke’s league position of 8th will not be pleasing those at the club. Two successive defeats to Bundesliga heavy hitters Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen have shown just how much work is still to be done at the Gelsenkirchen club. 

Consecutive wins over Cottbus and Karlsruhe had the optimism on the up at the Veltins Arena, but that has quickly dissipated.  

Trainer Fred Rutten has doubts over both Albert Streit (knee problem) and Gerald Asamoah (flu). His only other concern is whether to drop Fabian Ernst or Orlando Engelaar to the bench. Rafinha is suspended following the collection of five yellow cards.    

Gladbach will have gained confidence from the point they rescued against Bayern last weekend and will want to build upon that with the visit of Schalke. Hans Meyer does, however, have a few defensive worries with Daems out injured.    

Wolfsburg – Stuttgart   

VfL trainer Felix Magath will pit his wits against Armin Veh on Saturday as Wolfsburg host VfB Stuttgart at the Volkswagen Arena. 

The 'Wölfe' find themselves in 9th, just a single point ahead of Stuttgart. They have lost three of their last five games, but those defeats did come against high-flying Hoffenheim, Bayern and Leverkusen.  

Magath is likely to revert to a more offensive 4-4-2 line up, with Hasebe possibly coming in for the injured Dejagah.   

Stuttgart have now gone four games without a win and will be disappointed if they return home with less than three points on Saturday. Mexican duo Pavel Pardo and Ricardo Osorio only returned from international duty on Friday, so it is foreseeable that Khalid Boulahrouz and Sami Khedira could deputise.   

Eintracht Frankfurt – Hannover  

Two teams with identical records meet at the Commerzbank Arena when Eintracht Frankfurt entertain Hannover. Both teams have won three, drawn four and lost six, so the winner of this game will steal a leap on their rivals.  

Both sides have been hit terribly with injuries this season, but Frankfurt trainer Friedhelm Funkel will have Patrick Ochs back after his suspension. Bellaid is also set to return in place of Galindo, with Mehdi Mahdavikia likely to be on the bench.   

Hannover trainer Dieter Hecking will be targeting three away points against the Adler, but he will be without the services of Finnish striker Mikael Forssell, who has a shoulder problem, while Jan Schlaudraff also looks likely to miss out.   

Mike Hanke will therefore get a rare start, and Christian Schulz will return to defence due to a new injury to Frank Fahrenhorst. Jiri Stajner remains suspended.         

VfL Bochum – Hertha Berlin  

Having made one of their best starts to a Bundesliga season in years, Hertha Berlin find themselves in the lofty position of 5th and will be looking to rise even further with an away win over Bochum at the Rewirpower Stadion.    

Since their 5-1 hammering at the hands of Werder Bremen, the ‘Old lady’ have won two successive home games against Hoffenheim and Hamburg so are currently on a roll. Trainer Lucien Favre may have Marko Pantelic back after he missed last week’s win over HSV. Raffael is on stand-by should he not make it.  

Bochum have now failed to register a win in their last nine games and are ominously close to the drop-zone. They are just one point ahead of bottom side Cottbus, having amassed just 10 points from 13 games so far. Marcel Koller will, however, be boosted by the possible return of striker Stanislav Sestak.    

Arminia Bielefeld – Bayer Leverkusen  

Leverkusen maintained their position at the top of the table last weekend with a 2-1 win over Schalke and will want to stay there this week with a win over Bielefeld, who held Stuttgart to a goalless draw last weekend.  

The home side have won just once this season and need to start picking up the points or they are going to find it very difficult to move clear of the relegation zone. Michael Frontzeck has Tesche suspended, but Nico Herzig will be available following his suspension.   

Leverkusen eased past Schalke last weekend with strike duo Kiessling and Helmes both on the scoresheet. That win made up in part for their capitulation against Karlsruhe in the previous game.  

Gonzalo Castro will be a big loss for Bayer after his sending off last week and Hans Sarpei looks set to deputise, although there is speculation that U-19 international Stefan Reinartz could feature.  

1.FC Köln – 1899 Hoffenheim  

Two of last season’s promoted sides meet at the Rhein-Energie Stadion on Saturday as Köln entertain Hoffenheim. The home side has made a good start to the new campaign, but the visitors have made what can only be described as an unbelievable start.   

Hoffenheim remain neck-and-neck with leaders Bayer Leverkusen and returned to winning ways last weekend against Wolfsburg following their loss to Berlin the week before. Andreas Beck is suspended, so Janker or Nilsson could come in.  Chinedu Obasi is a slight injury doubt, so Edmund Becker may revert to a 4-4-2 system.  

Köln went down to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Werder last week, but do have five wins in their last ten games. 

Christoph Daum has Miso Brecko suspended so Kevin McKenna could fill in. The availability of Pierre Wome is also in question, so Ehret could move back to full back with Sanou drafted in wide.  

Hamburg – Werder Bremen  

The first Nord Derby of the season takes place at the HSH Nordbank Arena on Sunday, with Hamburg hosting rivals Werder Bremen.   

HSV’s away day blues continued last week when they lost their third consecutive game on the road against Hertha. In their previous defeats to Hoffenheim and Hannover they bounced back with a home win, but that won’t be easy against Werder.  

Marcell Jansen has fully recovered from injury so should beat Dennis Aogo to the full back slot. Jerome Boateng should hold onto the right-back slot, as Guy Demel is needed in midfield.  

Ahead of a Champions League week, Werder will want to build upon their win last weekend against Köln and go into next week on the back of a win.   

The under-fire Prödl could give way to Niemeyer as it is still unclear whether Clemens Fritz will be fit. Hugo Almeida is poised to keep his place ahead of Markus Rosenberg.  

Mathew Burt