Arminia Bielefeld will mark their return to the Bundesliga with a trip to Eintracht Frankfurt in the opening weekend of the 2020-21 campaign.
In contrast, Frankfurt finished ninth in the top flight last season and will be determined to break back into the European places this time around.
Match preview
Despite picking up victories in five of their final seven outings in the 2019-20 Bundesliga season, the damage was done early on for Frankfurt, who ultimately missed out on Europa League qualification by a margin of four points.
Adi Hutter's side also suffered a dismal exit from the most recent Europa League campaign as they lost 4-0 on aggregate to Basel in the round of 16, but a new season means a clean slate for a Frankfurt side with aspirations of a top-five finish this time around.
Frankfurt made the short journey to the Netherlands for their pre-season preparations, and Hutter's men followed up a 2-1 victory over PSV Eindhoven with defeat by the same scoreline against Ajax back in August, while Frankfurt's proposed friendly with Mainz was called off amid coronavirus concerns.
Die Adler returned to competitive action in the first round of the DFB-Pokal last weekend, with Bas Dost and Andre Silva - who recently joined on a permanent basis from AC Milan - on target as Frankfurt overcame third-tier side 1860 Munich.
Meanwhile, Arminia blew the competition out of the water to take the 2019-20 2.Bundesliga title by a 10-point margin over runners-up Stuttgart.
Uwe Neuhaus's side only lost twice in the second division all season and can look forward to plying their trade in the top flight for the first time since the 2008-09 campaign, but Arminia suffered a shock exit in the DFB-Pokal to fourth-tier side Rot-Weiss Essen on Monday.
The Arminia faithful will no doubt be eager to see how last season's 2.Bundesliga top scorer and captain Fabian Klos fares in the big time - the 32-year-old chalked up 21 of his side's 65 league goals in the most recent league campaign, in addition to bagging 11 assists.
Securing a second season of Bundesliga football will no doubt be the ultimate aim for Arminia as the new campaign prepares to begin, but Neuhaus's men have been handed a tough opening fixture against a Frankfurt side desperate to get off to a fast start and stake their claim for a European place.
The two sides last met in the quarter-finals of the 2016-17 DFB-Pokal, where Frankfurt won 1-0, and Arminia last triumphed against Frankfurt in the 2006-07 Bundesliga campaign.
Eintracht Frankfurt form (all competitions): W
Arminia Bielefeld form (all competitions): L
Team News
Frankfurt will be returning to top-flight action without the services of Evan N'Dicka, who picked up a severe ankle sprain in the recent victory over 1860 Munich.
The highly-rated defender is joined on the sidelines by Jetro Willems, who continues to recover from the season-ending knee injury he sustained while on loan at Newcastle United back in January.
Daichi Kamada - who recently penned a new deal with Hutter's side until 2023 - is in line to start in midfield behind Dost and Silva, while Filip Kostic returns from a suspension.
As far as Arminia are concerned, Neuhaus will be without striker Andreas Voglsammer owing to a foot injury, while Reinhold Yabo is reportedly struggling with a muscle strain.
The newly-promoted outfit will most likely stick with the majority of the starting lineup from the weekend cup defeat, but Sergio Cordova could come into the fold in Voglsammer's absence.
Eintracht Frankfurt possible starting lineup:
Trapp; Hasebe, Hinteregger, Abraham; Da Costa, Rode, Kohr, Kostic; Kamada; Dost, Silva
Arminia Bielefeld possible starting lineup:
Ortega; Brunner, Pieper, Nilsson, Laursen; Prietl, Consbruch, Hartel; Doan, Klos, Cordova
We say: Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0 Arminia Bielefeld
Arminia stormed to the 2. Bundesliga title last season and can feel optimistic about their chances of survival as they return to the big time, but Neuhaus's men go into the game off the back of a shock cup exit and Frankfurt's attacking stars will certainly fancy their chances at home, so we cannot see any other result than a comfortable victory for Hutter's side on the opening weekend.
