The giant from Signal Iduna Park only managed to climb to fourth place in the Bundesliga last season at the very last moment. So, the decision to replace the underperforming Nuri Sahin with Niko Kovac proved justified.
However, it didn’t lead to more stability, neither at the Club World Cup nor in the current season. In the Bundesliga, the team has dropped points in nearly half of its matches. In the last round, they defeated Bayer, but in the cup, they lost to the same opponent. Meanwhile, in the Champions League, they achieved a resounding 4-0 victory over Villarreal.
Last season in Sinsheim, Hoffenheim finally returned to European competitions, but performed poorly both there and in the league, narrowly avoiding relegation (32 points and fifteenth place). This season, however, they are confidently reclaiming ground, winning more than half their matches—although they suffered an unfortunate defeat to St. Pauli on penalties in the cup. They did, however, thrash Augsburg 3-0.
Girassi and company are averaging 1.75 goals scored and 0.92 conceded per game. But the opponent looks solid as well, with 2.08 goals scored and 1.42 conceded on average.
Borussia Dortmund have won two of their last three matches
50% of Borussia’s matches end with both teams scoring, and the average total goals per match is 2.67
Hoffenheim have won five of their last seven matches
75% of Hoffenheim’s matches end with both teams scoring, and the average total goals per match is 3.5.
Borussia Dortmund (probable lineup): Kobel – N. Schlotterbeck, Anton, Can – Svensson, Chukwuemeka, Bayer, Bellingham, Gross, Ryerson – Girassi.
Hoffenheim (probable lineup): Baumann – Bernardo, Heidari, Granach, Coufal – Burger, Avdullahu, Kramaric, Prömel – Toure, Asllani.
Overall, the current home team has the advantage. But in the last three meetings, both clubs have recorded one win each.
