At RB Leipzig, the sun continues to shine even at this grey time of year. Their 3-2 victory away to Borussia Dortmund last Saturday saw them overcome a direct rival in the race for the Champions League spots and was followed by a 2-1 win against Young Boys in their sixth and final group game of this season’s competition on Wednesday. Now Leipzig want to continue their outstanding run with three points in front of their fans in their final home game of the year, but have plenty of respect for Hoffenheim, who are strong on the road. Nonetheless, the goal for the fourth-placed team ahead of their meeting with the side in sixth is clear: to reduce the gap to the summit with a win.
Coach Marco Rose’s personnel decisions against the Swiss champions from Bern demonstrated just how strong the RB Leipzig squad is. With his team having already qualified for the round of 16, Rose used the opportunity to ring the changes and drafted eight players into the team that had not been included in the starting line-up for the away victory in Dortmund. Peter Gulacsi, Christopher Lenz, Nicolas Seiwald, Kevin Kampl, Yussuf Poulsen, Emil Forsberg, Fabio Carvalho and Benjamin Sesko were the new faces in the team. Based on the names included, the line-up certainly did not deserve the label of a B-team. Most of the players would probably be regulars at many Bundesliga clubs. “That shows how strong and deep our squad is,” said a satisfied Rose after the final whistle. Several regular players will return for the game against TSG, including the ex-Hoffenheim duo of Christoph Baumgartner and David Raum.
With 14 rounds of matches played in the league, RB have nine victories, two draws and three defeats on the board. Things have certainly gone better at home than they have away. Leipzig are actually on the longest unbeaten home run of all the current Bundesliga clubs. Since 1. FSV Mainz 05’s 3-0 win on 1 April, no Bundesliga club has departed the Red Bull Arena with three points; nine of Leipzig’s 11 games since have ended in victory. But Rose and his players know that in TSG, they are up against an opponent that have impressed with some outstanding away performances. “On the road in particular, TSG have had a really good season so far. Coach Pellegrino Matarazzo’s team have already won five games away from home!” Those were the words written of TSG Hoffenheim’s run, which represents a new club record, on the RB Leipzig website.
The cup winners are just as impressive defensively as they are offensively. The defence has let in only 15 goals in 14 games, while the attack has racked up an impressive goal average of 2.43 per match (34 in total). Compared to the line-up that started against Bern, Rose will bring Janis Blaswich back in between the sticks for Peter Gulacsi on Saturday. Dani Olmo (acromioclavicular joint injury) and Willi Orban (fitness training) are still absent.
Last season’s outstanding player Christopher Nkunku (at Chelsea since July) has by no means been forgotten, but has by now been more than well replaced, with “Xavi” Simons now wowing the crowds in Saxony. One of TSG’s principal challenges on Saturday will be to cancel out the 20-year-old attacking player from the Netherlands, who has been on loan with the club from Paris Saint-Germain since the summer. TSG will certainly have to go their performance limits if they are to get their first point at the Red Bull Arena since April 2021.