The Foals will be looking to strengthen their position for the third spot with a win over Markus Babbel’s struggling side.
Gladbach are certainly on course for a place in the next season’s UEFA Champions League and will be looking to strengthen their claim for the third place by beating Hoffenheim in their next game.
The Sinsheim outfit will also be desperate for all three points to avoid dropping down into the relegation zone. The tie will take place on Saturday, March 24, at the Borussia-Park.
Borussia Monchengladbach
Lucien Favre’s team are fresh from a German Cup semi-final loss to Bayern Munich. The home side lost 4-1 on penalties after the two teams played a 0-0 draw until extra-time. The Foals will be looking to continue their winning run
in the Bundesliga having beaten Bayer Leverkusen away from home in their last outing.
A win over Hoffenheim at the weekend will put them level on points with Bayern Munich if the Munich giants lose in their corresponding fixture against Hannover. The Foals are realistically out of the title race and their aim will
be to qualify for the Champions League.
This will in itself be a huge achievement for the Borussia-Park outfit considering the team almost got relegated last season. They have had a fantastic campaign until now and will definitely be seeking a positive end to this glorious
season.
Gladbach have lost just once in their last five league games and with eight games remaining in the competition, Favre’s team will look to maximize their advantage over Schalke, who are themselves fighting for a third place finish.
Hoffenheim
Markus Babbel’s men are currently going through a lean phase and have not been able to win since their victory over http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/VfL-Wolfsburg-c40881 last month. Hoffenheim, as a result, are gradually moving towards the relegation zone and will desperately
need three points to move away from the drop zone.
Hoffenheim are currently 12th in the league standings with 30 points and are only five points above the relegation play-off place. The Sinsheim outfit will only be concentrating to avoid relegation into the second division.
Team News
Borussia Monchengladbach
The Foals have no major injury concerns and could go with the same formation and side that faced Bayern Munich. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Igor-de-Camargo-c16693, though, could come in the playing XI after scoring in his last league outing Bayer Leverkusen as a
second-half substitute. As a result, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Mike-Hanke-c25699, could drop on the bench.
Hoffenheim
The visitors will stick with their usual 4-5-1 formation. Peniel Mlapa will play as a lone striker as he did in 2-1 loss to Stuttgart last weekend. However, Babbel could play http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Ryan-Babel-c31971 as the second striker in order to add extra
venom upfront.
Players to Watch
Gladbach are blessed with the class of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Juan-Arango-c19652 and the trio could be lethal on its day. Reus has by far been the leading goal scorer for the Foals this season and will once again be the man to watch. Another
goal for the attacker will take his season’s tally to 14. He also scored in his last league outing against Werkself.
The visiting side will have all hopes attached with their in-form central midfielder, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Sejad-Salihovic-c32849 who also scored in his team’s 2-1 loss against the Swabians last week. The 27-year-old has been serving Hoffenheim since 2006
and already scored 38 goals from 158 league appearances until now.
Prediction
Monchengladbach will definitely be a hard unit to beat at the Borussia-Park and a win is highly likely. It is expected that Lucien Favre’s side will emerge as 2-1 winners to close the gap on the Munich giants at the second spot.
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