Hoffenheim vs. Darmstadt preview: Struggling sides look for a return to form
Last-place Darmstadt make the short trip south on Tuesday to face Hoffenheim, who have really struggled in the last month and are slowly dropping down the table.
Hoffenheim
Hoffenheim have only won once in their last seven competitive games and have now lost their place in the top 6. They lacked any sort of offensive power in their loss to Leipzig over the weekend, but must take advantage of lowly Darmstadt to close out 2023.
Expect young star Maximilian Beier to return to the starting lineup alongside Marius Bülter and Andrej Kramaric. Pellegrino Matarazzo has many options in center defense, but the back three of Kevin Vogt, John Brooks, and Ozan Kabak should continue.
On Monday, Matarazzo commented, "If anyone thinks you can beat this opponent with a bit of possession, they are wrong. Darmstadt are one of the strongest teams in the bottom third of the table - we will need to put in a shift."
Team News
Hoffenheim seem to have recovered from an illness that swept through the team last week. Wout Weghorst, Mergim Berisha, Dennis Geiger, Marco John, and Bambase Conte are out with injuries.
Darmstadt
Darmstadt haven’t claimed a league win in their last eight contests and now sit bottom of the table. They lost to 10-man Wolfsburg over the weekend are especially struggling defensively, having easily given up the most goals in league play.
The holiday break is desperately needed as the club have a lengthy injury list with several key players. It will be interesting to see if Torsten Liberknecht continues with a front three of Mathias Honsak, Tim Skarke, and Luca Pfeiffer, who could be used again in a slightly deeper position.
Following the Wolfsburg loss, Lieberknecht said, “Now it's about continuing or stopping. I'm in favor of continuing. I wish the boys and all of us the necessary extra push to claim points. The view goes forward in the direction of Hoffenheim."
Team News
Oscar Vilhelmsson, Christoph Zimmermann, Fraser Hornby, Braydon Manu, Marvin Mehlem, and Fabian Nürnberger are all likely out. Aaron Seydel is questionable.