Cellar dwellers Hoffenheim hope for Bayer boost
TSG Hoffenheim 1899 will be hoping they are not propping up the Bundesliga for long in 2016 as they entertain Bayer 04 Leverkusen in their first test of the new year (kick-off 15.30CET/14.30GMT).
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The Sinsheim-based club spent the winter break at the very bottom of the Bundesliga, with 13 points from their first 17 games of the season. With new coach Huub Stevens a master in escape acts, they will be hoping to rise sooner rather than later.
Leverkusen will not be giving them a hand, though. They have two points to make up on fourth-placed Borussia Mönchengladbach to reach their main objective of the season, and Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez is showing no signs of wanting to stop scoring.
History
Matchday 1 rewind: Leverkusen 2-1 Hoffenheim
Goals: 0-1 Zuber (5'), 1-1 Kießling (45'), 2-1 Brandt (71')
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Possible line-ups
Hoffenheim: Baumann - Kaderabek, Schär, Süle, Kim - Strobl, Rudy - Schmid, Volland, Zuber - Vargas
Absentees: Tarik Elyounoussi (muscular), Kai Herdling (knee), Pirmin Schwegler (thigh)
Leverkusen: Leno - Jedvaj, Toprak, Tah, Wendell - Kampl, Kramer - Bellarabi, Calhanoglu - Kießling, Hernandez
Absentees: Roberto Hilbert (muscle tear), Charles Aranguiz (Achilles tendon), Sebastian Boenisch (muscle tear), Lars Bender (recovering)
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