TSG Hoffenheim – VfL Wolfsburg
This coming weekend the ball rolls in the Bundesliga for the last time before the international break. And again this week, five exciting games await us in the Saturday conference. In the German top flight, the 3rd matchday is now on the schedule and fans can look forward to the match between TSG from Hoffenheim and VfL Wolfsburg, among others, on Saturday at 15:30. You can find out who will come out on top in this duel in our Hoffenheim – Wolfsburg tip.
Let’s take a closer look at the standings before the match kicks off. Both teams can certainly be satisfied with their performance so far. TSG Hoffenheim is currently in 10th place with three points. After a 2-1 home loss to Freiburg in the opener, TSG secured a late 3-2 win against promoted Heidenheim.
The upcoming opponent, Wolfsburg, has yet to drop any points so far this season. Last week, the Wolves won 2-1 at 1. FC Köln. Thanks to these three points, the Lower Saxons worked their way up to fourth place in the table.
Hoffenheim – Wolfsburg info:
- Date & Time: 09/02/2023, 15:30 hrs.
- Game venue: PreZero Arena, Sinsheim
- Competition: Bundesliga, Matchday 3.
- TV broadcast: Sky
Hoffenheim form & balance check
The TSG experienced an absolute horror season in the preseason after a good start. The Kraichgauer stumbled towards the end of the season more and more towards the abyss. In the end, however, the quality in the squad was too great for relegation and Hoffenheim trundled into twelfth place in the table.
In the new season, however, the start under coach Pellegrino Matarazzo again did not go according to plan. At the start of the Bundesliga season, TSG suffered a deserved 2-1 defeat at home to SC Freiburg. And the game at Heidenheim also went very awry at first, before the Kraichgauer turned the game around and won 3-2.
Weghorst against ex-club
Wout Weghorst is back in the Bundesliga. The Dutchman returned from trips to the Premier League and Süper Lig and was loaned by TSG from Burnley FC in the summer. He missed the Bundesliga opener due to injury and only made his debut for the Kraichgauer the previous week.
On Saturday, the 31-year-old will now face his old club from the Autostadt. The attacker played there between 2018 and 2021. In 118 Bundesliga games for VfL, Weghorst scored a total of 59 times and set up 20 other goals. Against his old love, the Dutchman is now looking for his first goal for TSG.
Hoffenheim facts & analysis
- Placed 12th in the league in the preseason.
- In the previous week, Hoffenheim won 3:2 against Heidenheim.
- Won 4:1 in Lübeck in the cup
Wolfsburg form & balance check
Who would have thought at the start of last season that Niko Kovac would still be in charge of VfL Wolfsburg as coach at this point? After all, the Wolves started the preseason with two points from their first five games after the Croatian took over. Over the course of the season, however, the Lower Saxons steadily improved and in the end trundled into eighth place.
In the new season, however, VfL has been without fault so far. A 6-0 win over Makkabi Berlin in the first round of the cup was followed by a 2-0 win over Heidenheim in the Bundesliga opener. The VfL then also demonstrated morale in the previous week’s guest game in Cologne. After trailing 0:1, the Wolves fought their way back into the game and won 2-1 in the end.
Wind shall fix it
VfL Wolfsburg did not have a real goal scorer in its ranks in the preseason. The title of top scorer was shared by Yannick Gerhardt and Jonas Wind, who each scored six goals in the German top flight last season.
The latter, however, seems to have had a big drink of target water before the new season. The 24-year-old has scored all four goals for the Lower Saxons in the Bundesliga so far. Against Hoffenheim, the Dane now wants to go straight after it and score his sixth goal of the season in all competitions.
Wolfsburg facts & analysis
- Eighth in the league in the preseason.
- One of five teams with two wins to start the season.
- Won 2-1 in Cologne the previous week
Predicted lineup – last update on September 1, 2023
Hoffenheim will again start with a three-man backline. Marius Bülter will probably play on the unfamiliar left rail again against Wolfsburg. Maximilian Beier could move into the starting eleven after his goal the previous week.
VfL Wolfsburg will be looking to get the next win with a 4-3-3. In attack, the four-goal scorer Jonas Wind will act again. Patrick Wimmer has not been very convincing on the left side lately. Therefore, Jakub Kaminski could rotate into the starting lineup on Saturday.
Hoffenheim – Wolfsburg direct comparison & statistics
The previous 31 meetings between the two teams are part of their history. Thereby, the Wolves have the better record. VfL managed to win 15 of these duels, while there were seven draws and nine victories for TSG Hoffenheim. In the previous season, the Wölfe won both direct encounters by a score of 2:1.
- The last draw between the two teams was on 2019-09-23.
- The two teams were separated by 13 points in the preseason.
- Both teams have never been relegated from the Bundesliga
