Borussia Monchengladbach will be hoping to finally kickstart their Bundesliga campaign when they head to Arminia Bielefeld on Saturday.
The visitors have endured a disastrous season so far and find themselves in the midst of an unexpected relegation battle, whilst the hosts are just one point behind following their excellent recent form.
Match preview
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Following a poor start to the campaign, which saw Bielefeld win just once in their opening 15 games, and with that not arriving until matchday 11, a return to the 2.Bundesliga appeared destined come the end of the season.
However, following a remarkable turnaround in results either side of the New Year, Saturday's hosts have pulled clear of the relegation zone and into 14th place ahead of matchday 21.
Three wins and two draws from their last five outings have left Frank Kramer's two points above the relegation playoff spot at the time of writing, with the difference being revolved around their fortunes in front of goal in recent weeks.
With just 10 goals being netted in that dreadful 15-game spell to begin the season, Die Arminen have since found the net as many times during this five-match unbeaten run.
A win and a draw against the newly-promoted VfL Bochum and Greuther Furth have been supported by success achieved against European hopefuls RB Leipzig, Freiburg and, most recently, Eintracht Frankfurt.
Should they manage to continue their revival at the weekend, Bielefeld could climb as high as 11th depending on results elsewhere, and they will certainly be possessing the confidence in themselves to do so.
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Meanwhile, the positivity around the Bielefeld camp is not being replicated at Monchengladbach as they return from the international break.
The surprising exit of well-respected sporting director Max Eberl last week has added to the turbulent campaign endured at Saturday's visitors so far.
A remarkable 2-1 triumph at the Allianz Arena against leaders Bayern Munich at the beginning of 2022 had hope returning to Gladbach, but with three consecutive defeats to follow in all competitions, the doom and gloom has made a comeback once more.
Back-to-back 2-1 home defeats to European-chasing Bayer Leverkusen and Union Berlin have left Die Fohlen in a disappointing 12th place heading into the weekend, with the supposed challengers for a European spot themselves now just three points above the relegation playoff spot.
Boss Adi Hutter is under serious pressure to turn results around quickly, especially considering the departure of the man responsible for his appointment last week, and with the humiliating 3-0 exit from the DFB-Pokal to 2.Bundesliga side Hannover in between those 2-1 losses also not helping his cause.
The Austrian's appointment in the summer was meant to be the catalyst to bringing European football back to the club, but as we approach the business end of the season, Gladbach come into matchday 21 with a desperate need for points to pull themselves away from a catastrophic position at the wrong end of the table.
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Team News
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With left-back Andres Andrade doubtful due to an ankle injury, new signing George Bello could be in line to make his debut immediately for Bielefeld on Saturday.
In the same area of the pitch, Jacob Laursen is also facing a fitness test following a recent knock, as is central midfielder Fabian Kunze.
Other than the expected change at left-back, manager Kramer could be set to name the same starting 11 that picked up a fantastic 2-0 win at Frankfurt prior to the break.
As for the visitors, they will begin life without Denis Zakaria on Saturday, with the central midfielder departing for Juventus during the winter transfer window.
Christoph Kramer could partner youngster Kouadio Kone in the centre of the pitch as a result, but captain Lars Stindl is out for around a month with a knee injury.
Backup goalkeeper Tobias Sippel is the only other expected absentee though, following the return of Ramy Bensebaini to the side after his international duty with Algeria at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Arminia Bielefeld possible starting lineup:
Ortega; Brunner, Pieper, Nilsson, Bello; Schopf, Vasiliadis, Okugawa; Wimmer, Serra, Kruger
Borussia Monchengladbach possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Ginter, Friedrich, Elvedi; Lainer, Kramer, Kone, Bensebaini; Hofmann, Neuhaus; Embolo
We say: Arminia Bielefeld 1-1 Borussia Monchengladbach
Bielefeld have lost very few games this season owing to their excellent defensive organisation, so it is difficult to see them losing at home against this struggling Gladbach outfit.
The hosts could easily win this if both sides pick up from where they left off prior to the international break, but we are going for a draw in a tight game of football on Saturday.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Borussia Monchengladbach win with a probability of 39.18%. A win for Arminia Bielefeld had a probability of 35.42% and a draw had a probability of 25.4%.
The most likely scoreline for a Borussia Monchengladbach win was 0-1 with a probability of 8.92%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8.57%) and 0-2 (6.37%). The likeliest Arminia Bielefeld win was 1-0 (8.4%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.99%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with an 12% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted a 1-1 draw for this match.
