Table-toppers Bayern München and second-placed VfL Wolfsburg maintain a tight grip on the first two spots in the Bundesliga table, but there are four other teams currently battling it out for the other two Champions League spots. Fourth-placed Augsburg (33 points) and Bayer Leverkusen in fifth (32 points) will certainly be keeping an eye on tonight's clash between Schalke 04 (31 points) and Borussia Mönchengladbach (33). The two teams will open Bundesliga matchday 20 tonight at 20:30 CET.
Gladbach in third place and sixth-placed Schalke are merely two points apart. Of course it is too early in the season to say that tonight’s match will show which team has the better shot at qualifying for the Champions League. However, the result could help the winner gain momentum for the weeks ahead.
Economic Borussia – thanks to Herrmann
Gladbach have collected six points from their two games after the winter break, scoring the minimum possible number of goals. Patrick Herrmann has been the key player, scoring in both of the club's 1-0 wins over Stuttgart and Freiburg. Head coach Lucien Favre sees room for improvement. “Six points from two matches is the ideal start. However, I know that we still need to improve and take more control of games,” he explained.
Schalke 04 also have every right to be happy with their tally of four points from two matches in 2015. They first won 1-0 against Hannover, before drawing with Bayern away from home. “When we play in Munich, we have to be happy with a 1-1 draw,” commented World Champion and Schalke skipper Benedikt Höwedes after the match. Schalke had a man advantage for most of the game after Jerome Boateng saw red in the 17th minute.
Schalke trust third-choice goalkeeper Wellenreuther
The good mood in Schalke is dampened by an injury crisis. Julian Draxler, Jefferson Farfan, Leon Goretzka and Sead Kolasinac are out with long-term injuries. On top of that, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar was sent off against Hannover and has been issued with a four-match ban plus two matches suspended until January 2016. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Schalke now also have their two first-choice goalkeepers unavailable. Ralf Fährmann picked up an injury over the winter break and Fabian Giefer had to be subbed off at half time against Bayern due to a groin injury. Youth keeper Timon Wellenreuther stepped up to make his Bundesliga debut in that important game. He will also be in goal against Gladbach.
Meanwhile, Lucien Favre has almost his entire squad to choose from. André Hahn is still out with an Achilles problem and it’s yet to be decided whether Martin Stranzl can play after he was hit in the face by the ball during the last match. That means while Schalke are fielding a young side with extremely inexperienced players on the bench, Gladbach can choose from their best players and have several options for substitutions.
Only one Gladbach victory in 18 games away at Schalke
In a week with three matches in seven games, fitness will undoubtedly be a key factor. Although the odds may be against the Royal Blues, Roman Neustädter is optimistic before the clash with his former club. “We have the opportunity to climb to third place. Both teams have had a good start after the winter break and it will be an exciting game. We have adjusted to our new system of playing very well and we've got excellent attacking options with players who are always likely to score,” he commented.
Table-toppers Bayern München and second-placed VfL Wolfsburg maintain a tight grip on the first two spots in the Bundesliga table, but there are four other teams currently battling it out for the other two Champions League spots. Fourth-placed Augsburg (33 points) and Bayer Leverkusen in fifth (32 points) will certainly be keeping an eye on tonight's clash between Schalke 04 (31 points) and Borussia Mönchengladbach (33). The two teams will open Bundesliga matchday 20 tonight at 20:30 CET.
Gladbach in third place and sixth-placed Schalke are merely two points apart. Of course it is too early in the season to say that tonight’s match will show which team has the better shot at qualifying for the Champions League. However, the result could help the winner gain momentum for the weeks ahead.
Economic Borussia – thanks to Herrmann
Gladbach have collected six points from their two games after the winter break, scoring the minimum possible number of goals. Patrick Herrmann has been the key player, scoring in both of the club's 1-0 wins over Stuttgart and Freiburg. Head coach Lucien Favre sees room for improvement. “Six points from two matches is the ideal start. However, I know that we still need to improve and take more control of games,” he explained.
Schalke 04 also have every right to be happy with their tally of four points from two matches in 2015. They first won 1-0 against Hannover, before drawing with Bayern away from home. “When we play in Munich, we have to be happy with a 1-1 draw,” commented World Champion and Schalke skipper Benedikt Höwedes after the match. Schalke had a man advantage for most of the game after Jerome Boateng saw red in the 17th minute.
Schalke trust third-choice goalkeeper Wellenreuther
The good mood in Schalke is dampened by an injury crisis. Julian Draxler, Jefferson Farfan, Leon Goretzka and Sead Kolasinac are out with long-term injuries. On top of that, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar was sent off against Hannover and has been issued with a four-match ban plus two matches suspended until January 2016. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Schalke now also have their two first-choice goalkeepers unavailable. Ralf Fährmann picked up an injury over the winter break and Fabian Giefer had to be subbed off at half time against Bayern due to a groin injury. Youth keeper Timon Wellenreuther stepped up to make his Bundesliga debut in that important game. He will also be in goal against Gladbach.
Meanwhile, Lucien Favre has almost his entire squad to choose from. André Hahn is still out with an Achilles problem and it’s yet to be decided whether Martin Stranzl can play after he was hit in the face by the ball during the last match. That means while Schalke are fielding a young side with extremely inexperienced players on the bench, Gladbach can choose from their best players and have several options for substitutions.
Only one Gladbach victory in 18 games away at Schalke
In a week with three matches in seven games, fitness will undoubtedly be a key factor. Although the odds may be against the Royal Blues, Roman Neustädter is optimistic before the clash with his former club. “We have the opportunity to climb to third place. Both teams have had a good start after the winter break and it will be an exciting game. We have adjusted to our new system of playing very well and we've got excellent attacking options with players who are always likely to score,” he commented.
According to the statistics, Schalke are likely to win at home. Borussia have only managed to win one of their last 18 games in Gelsenkirchen. However, Gladbach decided the previous encounter this season in their favour by winning 4-1.
