The final match of gameweek 28 in the Bundesliga will come from Volkswagen Arena, where Wolfsburg will be playing host to Borussia Monchengladbach on Sunday evening.
While both these sides are in no immediate danger of relegation, they are still uncomfortably close to the bottom three teams, and three points will help renew their ambitions of finishing in the top half heading into the final stretch of the season.
Match preview
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After finishing four of the last five league campaigns in the top eight, including missing out on European qualification by a single point last term, Wolfsburg have experienced a major fall from grace this season, currently down in 14th place with seven games to go.
Under the guidance of Nico Kovac, Die Wolfe only managed 25 points in 27 league games, and after losing 3-1 to Augsburg last month, which took them to 10 consecutive matches without a win, the club opted to part ways with the Croat during the international break.
After 173 games, almost six years away from the Bundesliga and an eventful stint in the Premier League, Ralph Hasenhuttl was the man chosen to replace Kovac in the hot seat and the former Southampton boss made a winning start in his new role, guiding his side to a 2-0 win over Werder Bremen last weekend.
Maxence Lacroix and Lovro Majer found the net in either half to bring up Wolfsburg's first win since mid-December, and while that would have given the side a huge boost of confidence, they now need to put on a similar performance at home, where they are winless in their last seven matches.
In their history of top-flight competition, die Wolfe have not beaten any team more times than Monchengladbach (22). However, including their 1-0 defeat to this opponent in the DFB-Pokal earlier this season, they have now lost each of their last three matches against the Foals.
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While Wolfsburg have experienced a significant drop-off this season, the same can be said for Borussia Monchengladbach, who ended each of the last nine seasons in the top 10 while securing European football four times during that period.
Die Fohlen head into gameweek 28 level on points with Wolfsburg and pulled off their biggest win of the season against die Wolfe in the reverse fixture back in November, but since then, they have only managed three wins in 15 top-flight matches, along with six draws and seven losses.
Gerardo Seoane's side conceded their 11th defeat of the season last weekend, losing 3-0 at home to Freiburg, which extended their current winless run in the league to four games, following three consecutive draws against relegation candidates Mainz and Koln before a 1-1 draw to Heidenheim just before the international break.
Across the second half of the season, the visitors have only picked up one win and eight points in total, which is the second-lowest tally in the division over the period, with only Darmstadt earning fewer (four).
Monchengladbach have failed to win any of their last 10 matches away from Borussia-Park and are on course to record their worst league campaign since ending in the relegation playoff spot back in 2010-11 unless they can find a few positive results in the final seven games of the season.
Team News
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Lacroix will be forced into a watching brief this weekend following his red card last week, and he will be joined on the sidelines by Cedric Zesiger, who was shown his fifth yellow of the season in the same game and will have to serve a one-match ban.
Lukas Nmecha is done for the season due to a muscle injury, while Koen Casteels has now missed the last two games with a shoulder injury and is also likely to watch the remainder of the season from the touchline.
Kevin Paredes picked up a knock against Werder Bremen and has been flagged as a minor doubt, while Rogerio could return to the squad on Sunday after missing out last week with a muscle injury.
The visitors, on the other hand, could be without Nico Elvedi, who sustained a hip injury against Freiburg, which should see Maximilian Wober return to the starting 11 to partner Ko Itakura in central defence.
Rounding out the injuries are Florian Neuhaus (Achilles tendon), Manu Kone (muscle), Mamadou Doucoure (muscle) and Simon Walde (ankle), all of whom are ruled out for this match.
Wolfsburg possible starting lineup:
Pervan; Baku, Bornauw, Jenz, Maehle; Majer, Gerhardt, Arnold, Paredes; Behrens, Sarr
Borussia Monchengladbach possible starting lineup:
Omlin; Scally, Itakura, Woebe, Netz; Reitz, Weigl, Kramer; Honorat, Pefok, Hack
We say: Wolfsburg 2-1 Borussia Monchengladbach
With a new manager at the helm, Wolfsburg managed to bring an end to a dismal 11-match winless run last week and that result would have done wonders for the morale around the camp heading into the business end of the season. The visitors have been terrible on the road this season, winning just once in 13 outings, and we feel they will be unable to avoid another defeat in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Devesh Jaganath
