Preview: Arminia Bielefeld vs. Wolfsburg - prediction, team news, lineups

Arminia Bielefeld take on Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga on Friday night, with the hosts able to move out of the bottom three by avoiding defeat.

Wolfsburg, meanwhile, will be looking to continue their momentum and remain in the top four places in the table.

Match preview

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Arminia sprung a big surprise by earning a point in a hugely entertaining 3-3 draw at league leaders Bayern Munich on Monday night.

Having led 2-0 and 3-1 in the game, there may have been a tinge of disappointment within Uwe Neuhaus's mind that his side could not hold on for a famous victory against the European champions, but any side surely has to consider a draw at the Allianz Arena to be a bonus point on the board, especially for one struggling towards the bottom of the table.

Stefan Ortega's goal led a charmed life throughout the game, too, with the Bavarians testing the visitors' goalkeeper on 12 separate occasions, whereas Arminia scored with each of their shots on target.

In truth it was probably a good time for the minnows to have played Bayern, with Hansi Flick's side only recently returning from Qatar having competed in the FIFA Club World Cup, compared to Arminia having had two weeks' rest after the postponement of their fixture against Werder Bremen due to heavy snowfall.

However, regardless of how the superb draw came about, it leaves Neuhaus's side level on points with Hertha Berlin with a game in hand, and as such a chance to move out of the relegation zone with a positive result against Wolfsburg on Friday.

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The hosts will certainly not find matters easy against Wolfsburg, though, with Oliver Glasner's side still having only been defeated twice in the Bundesliga this season.

The Wolves were left frustrated, however, after a 0-0 draw at home to Borussia Monchengladbach last weekend after dominating the majority of the match.

While far from a disastrous result, Kevin Mbabu, Yannick Gerhardt and Xaver Schlager all had half-chances to snatch a dramatic victory, which would have put more distance between themselves and Bayer Leverkusen in fifth place.

Instead, as it stands, Glasner's side still only have a three-point safety net within the Champions League qualification positions, having been overtaken by Eintracht Frankfurt in the table. Friday represents the sort of fixture they may need to win to ensure a return to Europe's elite competition.

Arminia Bielefeld Bundesliga form: WDWLLD

Wolfsburg Bundesliga form: DWWWWD
Wolfsburg form (all competitions): WWWWWD

Team News

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Arminia lost their talented winger Ritsu Doan to a serious knee injury during the first half against Bayern, with the Japan international unlikely to return until late March.

Neuhaus does not appear to have any other injury issues to contend with, so Sergio Cordova and Christian Gebauer will compete for a place in the starting XI to replace Doan.

Michel Vlap should continue in support of Fabian Klos, having scored nine minutes into his debut against Bayern.

Wolfsburg, meanwhile, do not have any known injury or suspension concerns at present.

With an eight-day break until facing Hertha after this match, Glasner is free to pick his strongest XI, which has served him extremely well in recent weeks.

Arminia Bielefeld possible starting lineup:
Ortega; Brunner, Pieper, Nilsson, Laursen; Kunze, Prietl; Gebauer, Vlap, Voglsammer; Klos

Wolfsburg possible starting lineup:
Casteels; Mbabu, Lacroix, Brooks, Otavio; Arnold, Schlager; Baku, Gerhardt, Steffen; Weghorst

We say: Arminia Bielefeld 0-2 Wolfsburg

We expect the visitors to get back to winning ways in Bielefeld, with their excellent defensive record likely to halt the hosts in their tracks.

With Neuhaus's side preferring to play out from the back, Wolfsburg's pressing game should suit this contest well.