Both looking to keep their 100% continental records intact, Heidenheim and Chelsea will lock horns at Voith-Arena for a Conference League clash on Thursday evening.
FCH come into the match following a battering at the hands of the German champions in the Bundesliga, whilst the Blues are enjoying a productive start to the Premier League campaign under their forward-thinking management.
Match preview
Taking charge of the club in 2007, legendary coach Frank Schmidt recently admitted that he only ever dreamed of reaching the second tier of domestic football with Heidenheim, but the German minnows are now facing the reality of two-time European champions Chelsea arriving at Voith-Arena in European competition on Thursday evening.
Despite their inexperience on the continental stage, FCH have made a flawless start to their 2024-25 Conference League adventure, recording three straight wins over NK Olimpija Ljubljana, Pafos FC and Scottish outfit Hearts, meaning that the hosts sit sixth in the 36-team league table.
An extraordinary eighth-placed finish in the Bundesliga last season qualified Heidenheim for the Conference League, although Schmidt's troops are enduring a trickier domestic campaign this time around, with FCH currently occupying 15th spot in the top-flight standings, just two points above newly-promoted St Pauli in the relegation-playoff zone.
Thursday's hosts returned from the November international break to face a daunting away trip at the home of the Bundesliga holders on Saturday evening, when despite the visitors racing into a two-goal lead courtesy of strikes from Niklas Dorsch and Mathias Honsak, Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen ended up as convincing 5-2 victors.
Excluding a perfect Conference League start, Heidenheim's long-term form is of considerable concern ahead of Chelsea's high-profile visit to Voith-Arena this Thursday, with the German outfit winless in their last seven matches across the Bundesliga and this term's DFB-Pokal.
Since bowing out of the EFL Cup at the fourth-round stage against Newcastle United in the final moments of October, Chelsea have posted a run of four matches without defeat so far in November, with the most recent of those positive results arriving at the King Power Stadium against relegation-threatened Leicester City on Saturday afternoon.
Often ridiculed during his debut campaign in England for his unconvincing finishing, Nicolas Jackson is currently showcasing the hallmarks of a top-class forward and bagged his seventh Premier League goal of the season in the East Midlands to open the scoring, before Enzo Fernandez's effort made sure of maximum points in the second period.
Collecting eight points from a quartet of top-flight battles since the 2-1 defeat at Liverpool on October 20, Enzo Maresca's Chelsea are sitting pretty in third spot in the Premier League table as the busy festive period approaches, just a single point behind second-placed Manchester City.
Focusing on continental matters, the first three gameweeks of the Conference League have shown just why the Blues are overwhelming favourites to lift UEFA's third-tier club trophy in the Polish city of Wroclaw next year, with Thursday's visitors scoring an eye-watering 16 goals across their opening trio of contests.
A second-string Chelsea side produced the standout result of the round last time out on November 7, when braces from Joao Felix and Christopher Nkunku made the headlines from an eight-goal demolition of Armenia outfit FC Noah - a club who were only established in 2017.
Team News
Heidenheim suffered a significant injury blow during their loss at Bayer Leverkusen on the weekend, with leading goalscorer Marvin Pieringer now sidelined until early February due to an Achilles tendon issue.
The four-goal forward joins long-term absentee Luka Jens in the medical room, with the 20-year-old yet to feature in a competitive sense this season because of a shoulder injury.
FCH have a number of other players who have not kicked a ball so far in 2024-25 because of their respective fitness problems, including midfielders Thomas Leon Keller and Julian Niehues.
After missing the success at Leicester on Saturday, Pedro Neto is battling to be fit for Thursday's trip to Germany, with the Chelsea winger suffering a minor knock whilst on Portugal duty earlier this month.
Reece James has recently suffered another hamstring strain and the Blues are now waiting nervously for the results of a scan on the area, meaning that the injury-plagued Englishman faces a further spell on the Stamford Bridge sidelines.
Maresca's options at right-back could be reduced even further based on the availability of Malo Gusto, who sat out of the Leicester win due to illness.
With a packed schedule planned between now and the New Year, expect Chelsea to make their usual Conference League changes, resulting in the likes of Tosin Adarabioyo, Axel Disasi and Renato Veiga earning starts.
Heidenheim possible starting lineup:
Muller; Traore, Manika, Gimber, Fohrenbach; Dorsch, Maloney, Schoppner; Conteh, Honsak, Wanner
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Jorgensen; Disasi, Badiashile, Adarabioyo, Veiga; Caicedo, George, Nkunku, Felix, Mudryk; Guiu
We say: Heidenheim 1-3 Chelsea
Just a decade after residing in the third tier of German football, Heidenheim are preparing to face one of Europe's biggest clubs at Voith-Arena on Thursday night.
Although Maresca is set to field a second-string XI, the excitement of the FCH fans will not be dampened, even if a convincing defeat appears to be on the cards.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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