Relegation-threatened Fortuna Dusseldorf play host to Hoffenheim on Saturday afternoon on the back of losing 5-0 at Bayern Munich last weekend.

Meanwhile, Hoffenheim make the trip to the Merkur Spiel-Arena as one of the form teams in the Bundesliga, recording seven points from their last three outings.

Match preview

The return to form of Werder Bremen has heaped the pressure on Dusseldorf, who had earlier held a clear advantage over the bottom two teams in Germany's top flight.

Under threat of dropping into the relegation zone, Bremen's defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt came as a huge relief to Uwe Rosler and his squad, but they still have considerable work to do in order to retain their Bundesliga status.

With Mainz 05 having gone five games without a win, Rosler will feel that his team are in an ideal position to crucially move one place further up the table.

There will also be an acknowledgement that the following double-header with Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig heaps the pressure on Flingeraner heading into their next outing.

While succumbing so tamely at the Allianz Arena came as a blow, it could be perceived that Dusseldorf's focus will only be sharpened given the difficultly of their upcoming games.

From Hoffenheim's perspective, they will feel that their hosts are there for the taking, especially after recording back-to-back victories.

Although an early dismissal aided their efforts against FC Koln, they showed an impressive resilience to register a 1-0 success at Mainz last weekend.

That was just the second time that Hoffenheim have recorded a clean sheet in the Bundesliga during 2020, highlighting the area which has prevented them from advancing further up the table.

Nevertheless, despite conceding in excess of 1.5 goals per match over the course of the campaign, Alfred Schreuder's side still sit in seventh position, only adrift of a Europa League spot on goal difference.

Like Dusseldorf, Hoffenheim still have to play Leipzig and Dortmund, subsequently putting them under pressure to take advantage of a fixture against opposition outside of the top five.

Fortuna Dusseldorf Bundesliga form: DDDDWL

Hoffenheim Bundesliga form: LDLDWW

Team News

Hoffenheim could be boosted by the return to the squad of Andrej Kramaric, who has shaken off a persistent ankle issue.

The Croatia international is expected to begin the game on the substitutes' bench, regardless of whether Ihlas Bebou has recovered from a knee injury.

On a further positive note, defender Benjamin Hubner is available again after serving a one-match suspension.

Dusseldorf will also welcome back a player in the form of Kaan Ayhan, who should slot straight back into the middle of the backline.

Zack Steffen and Marcel Sobottka both remain sidelined, but Dawid Kownacki is pushing for a return to the squad after a problem with his knee.

Fortuna Dusseldorf possible starting lineup:
Kastenmeier; Giebelmann, Ayhan, Hoffmann; Suttner, Thommy, Berisha, Stoger, Zimmermann; Hennings, Karaman

Hoffenheim possible starting lineup:
Baumann; Zuber, Hubner, Posch, Kaderabek; Grillitsch, Baumgartner, Rudy; Dabbur, Bebou, Skov

We say: Fortuna Dusseldorf 1-2 Hoffenheim

Given their demise against Bayern, we feel that Dusseldorf may find it difficult to bounce back in their next fixture. Coupled with Hoffenheim's recent resurgence, we have to back the visitors to claim a narrow victory.