Freiburg's exceptional Bundesliga campaign will continue when they travel to face newcomers VFL Bochum on Saturday afternoon.

The visitors are in the midst of an unlikely battle for Champions League football, whilst Bochum will be looking for points to distance themselves from the drop.

Match preview

Few teams have impressed as much as Freiburg in Europe, let alone Germany this season, with the Breisgau-Brasilianer currently third in the Bundesliga table.

Having enjoyed an unbeaten start to the campaign, Freiburg were eventually knocked off their stride by league leaders Bayern Munich in the final match before the international break.

Unable to bounce back with an immediate win, Freiburg once again fell victim to another defeat, this time courtesy of Eintracht Frankfurt.

The two results have somewhat staggered the progression of Christian Streich's side, who had previously not lost back-to-back league matches since the beginning of April.

As for the last time that Freiburg suffered three consecutive defeats, that came almost exactly a year ago, as the Baden-Wurttemberg based club attempted to fend off the threat of relegation.

There should be no such issue for Streich's men this season, instead they are targeting their first appearance in the group stage of European competition since 2012-13.

Under the tutelage of current boss Streich, Freiburg qualified for the Europa League on the back of a fifth-placed finish the season prior, but were unable to progress from a group containing eventual winners Sevilla.

For Bochum, it is 17 years since they last competed in Europe, but Die Unabsteigbaren will likely be content with surviving in the Bundesliga this season.

Promoted as 2. Bundesliga champions in the previous campaign, Bochum have endured a mix return to life in Germany's top flight, winning only four of their opening 12 matches.

Remarkably, three of those four victories have come in the comfort of their own home, including a 2-0 triumph over Hoffenheim in the last game at the Ruhrstadion before the recess.

Without a Bundesliga win against Freiburg since February 2005, the division's third-lowest lowest scorers will be looking to defy the history books when the pair meet on Saturday.

However, the good news for Bochum supporters is their side were victorious the last time that the two faced each other, triumphing 2-0 in a 2. Bundesliga fixture during the 2015-16 campaign.