Hoffenheim vs. Heidenheim preview: Can Matarazzo right the ship?
9th-place Heidenheim make the short trip on Matchday 19 to face 8th-place Hoffenheim, who are showing concerning signs of late under Pellegrino Matarazzo.
Hoffenheim
After starting the campaign strong, Hoffenheim have only won once in their last nine league matches. The defense has really struggled, having given up three goals in each of their last four games.
Left-back David Jurasek was signed on loan from Benfica this week and they’re hoping he can be a good pairing opposite right-back Pavel Kaderabek, as Robert Skov is no longer starting. Hoffenheim need to get a result this weekend or else the job status of Pellegrino Matarazzo will come under even more scrutiny.
Matarazzo commented, "We will prepare ourselves, like we did against Freiburg, for Heidenheim's strength from set-pieces. They score lots of goals from dead-ball situations and by winning the ball back. We need to be ready for this style of play and intensity."
Team News
Finn Ole Becker, Dennis Geiger, Marco John and Mergim Berisha are out, while Ozan Kabak is suspended.
Heidenheim
FCH haven’t suffered a defeat in their last five league contests and look as if they’ve been in the first division for years. They’re consistently well-disciplined under Frank Schmidt and likely only need a few more victories to confirm their Bundesliga status for next season.
Schmidt isn’t expected to make any changes to his 4-2-3-1 lineup that drew with Wolfsburg last weekend. Captain Patrick Mainka hasn’t missed a minute this season and he should again continue in a defense that includes Föhrenbach, Gimber and Traore.
In his presser, the long-serving trainer stated, “We see that there is already a large distance to the very bottom. It’s our focus that we will always look down there and stand above that line. It's good that we have a certain buffer because we can't assume that we will remain unbeaten until the end of the season.”
Team News
Denis Thomalla, Thomas Keller and Elidon Qenaj will likely remain out.