Gladbach search for a first point as Hoffenheim arrive with their own problems

Hoffenheim travel to Mönchengladbach on Sunday with one win from five Bundesliga games and a place in the relegation zone, but the heavier weight in this fixture sits with the home side. Borussia Mönchengladbach are still searching for their first point of the season.

A slide that has to stop

Gladbach are 18th with no points, a goal difference of minus eleven and five straight defeats. Another loss would stretch that run to six and sharpen the questions around a club that badly needs to turn things around. Hoffenheim are 17th with three points, three clear of their hosts, and a win at Borussia-Park would open a six-point gap.

Five defeats and a habit of late collapses

Gladbach have scored seven goals in their last five games and conceded 18, an average of 3.6 per match. Seven of their 18 conceded goals this season have come in the final 15 minutes, a pattern that has repeatedly cost them. At home they have scored six times in two games but conceded eight, and they are still waiting for a win anywhere.

Hoffenheim’s own record is far from convincing. Their only victory came at home, and they have scored just three times in two away games. Their season form reads LLWLL.

Recent meetings

These two sides have produced plenty of goals. In five Bundesliga meetings, each has won twice, with one draw, and both have scored 14 goals. The most recent game went Gladbach’s way, a 4-0 win in May, while Hoffenheim beat them 5-1 in January.

Absences at both ends

Gladbach face a long list of absences: Castrop, Fleck, Honorat, Itakura, Kleindienst, Leopold and Leszczynski are all out, and Kuhn is a doubt with a muscle problem. Hoffenheim will be without Bernardo, who is suspended after a red card, along with Hajdari and Wimmer, who are both injured.

Our prediction

Borussia Mönchengladbach 1-2 1899 Hoffenheim. Gladbach have shown they can be dangerous at home, but their defensive frailties, especially late in games, make it hard to back them to hold on. Hoffenheim are not a commanding side, yet they have the more composed away record of the two, and a narrow away win fits the way this fixture has been playing out.