Borussia Monchengladbach take on FC Koln in the Bundesliga on Saturday, with the visitors looking to gain a positive result as they look to remain clear of the relegation zone.
Gladbach, meanwhile, can move into the Champions League qualification positions in the table with a victory.
Match preview
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Gladbach were involved in a tactical and cagey affair against Union Berlin last weekend, with Marco Rose's side picking up a respectable 1-1 draw.
Robin Knoche headed the hosts ahead, wrong-footing Yann Sommer in goal with the Swiss goalkeeper helpless to prevent it trickling inside the left post. However, Alassane Plea levelled proceedings just before the hour mark with a sensational strike into the far corner after a lovely one-two with Jonas Hofmann from outside of the area.
Reminiscent of his compatriot Thierry Henry, it was a goal worthy of winning the game and moving his side into the top four, but unfortunately that was not the case, with Gladbach still having plenty of work to do as they look to qualify for the Champions League once again.
However, their hopes of winning the DFB-Pokal for the first time since 1995 remain firmly alive after Wednesday's impressive 2-1 win at Stuttgart, with Plea and Marcus Thuram both on the scoresheet as they overturned a one-goal deficit.
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Koln, meanwhile, moved out of the relegation zone with a crucial 3-1 victory over fellow strugglers Arminia Bielefeld last weekend.
Markus Gisdol's side were boosted by the additions of Max Meyer and Emmanuel Dennis earlier in the week, with the latter thrown straight into Koln's attack for his debut, which was a huge boost to their chances of winning the relegation six-pointer.
On the day, Marius Wolf proved to be the poacher Gisdol required, with the Borussia Dortmund loanee twice pouncing on rebounds to provide his side with a significant lead. Elvis Rexhbecaj sealed the three points with an emphatic late finish, with Sergio Cordova's response proving to be nothing more than a consolation goal as Arminia dropped into the relegation playoff position in place of Koln.
However, Gisdol will have been enraged by his side's penalty-shootout defeat to Jahn Regensburg in the DFB-Pokal on Wednesday, with his side blowing a two-goal lead against the second tier outfit. The only positive is that the 51-year-old can fully focus on keeping his side in the division, but he must quickly pick them up ahead of a testing trip to Gladbach.
Borussia Monchengladbach Bundesliga form: WWDWWD
Borussia Monchengladbach form (all competitions): WDWWDW
FC Koln Bundesliga form: LLDWLW
FC Koln form (all competitions): LDWLWL
Team News
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Gladbach appear to have absolutely no injuries or suspensions to contend with, meaning that Rose is free to pick his strongest possible XI.
Indeed, they do not have another game until travelling to Wolfsburg eight days later, so the likes of Lars Stindl and Florian Neuhaus will expect to start having only been used from the bench in the draw at Union Berlin.
Koln, meanwhile, are likely to remain without Sava-Arangel Cestic, Sebastian Andersson and Florian Kainz due to injury.
Meyer could make his full debut for the club after coming off the bench in the win over Arminia.
Borussia Monchengladbach possible starting lineup:
Sommer; Lainer, Ginter, Elvedi, Bensebaini; Neuhaus, Kramer; Plea, Stindl, Hofmann; Thuram
FC Koln possible starting lineup:
T. Horn; Mere, Czichos, J. Horn; Wolf, Skhiri, Meyer, Katterbach; Duda, Jakobs; Dennis
We say: Borussia Monchengladbach 2-1 FC Koln
Koln are rarely soundly beaten, so we can see them putting up a decent fight against Gladbach.
However, the hosts should have too much offensive firepower for the relegation strugglers in the end, with Rose's side boosted by finally having a quieter schedule ahead of them.
