RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim set for UEFA Champions League six-pointer under the Friday night lights
RB Leipzig host TSG Hoffenheim on Friday night, with both sides knowing that a win will give their chances of qualifying for next season’s UEFA Champions League a huge boost.
Ahead of Matchday 27’s curtain raiser, RB Leipzig sit fifth in the table, just three points behind Hoffenheim in third and VfB Stuttgart in fourth, but with an inferior goal difference. Although fifth could yet prove enough for Champions League football next season, a fourth-placed finish or above would guarantee it.
With just five points between Hoffenheim and sixth-placed Bayer Leverkusen, both TSG and Leipzig know that any slip-up between now and the end of the season could prove costly, especially given Leipzig’s narrow 1-0 defeat at Stuttgart last time out.
Despite their respective strong league positions, both Hoffenheim and Leipzig have lost some of their consistency recently, with both sides having won two, drawn two and lost one of their last five. In Hoffenheim’s case, many of those dropped points came against teams battling relegation, as Cologne, St. Pauli and Wolfsburg all took points off TSG.
Watch: VfB Stuttgart 1-0 RB Leipzig
When the two teams last met in November, Hoffenheim came away 3-1 winners thanks to goals from Albian Hajdari, Tim Lemperle and Grischa Prömel, despite Yan Diomande having given Leipzig an early lead.
However, that is one of just five Hoffenheim wins against Leipzig since Die Roten Bullen got promoted to the Bundesliga in 2016, with Leipzig having won 12 of the 21 meetings. Prior to Hoffenheim’s win in November, Leipzig had won six of the last eight meetings, and Hoffenheim just one. That said, TSG have only lost one of the last four, winning two.
Watch: Hoffenheim 3-1 RB Leipzig
The two teams share a striking number of similarities. For one, both teams will likely set up in some form of a 4-3-3 formation - a tactic that has led to both teams having amongst the best offences and defences in the league. Both sides generally like to have more of the ball, with Leipzig averaging 53% possession per game and Hoffenheim 52%. They also both excel in winning duels, with Leipzig ranking top in the division for the metric.
One area where Hoffenheim comfortably have the edge is in distance covered. The club from Sinsheim the league standings in that regard, whereas Leipzig sit just 14th. Hoffenheim also rank top for most sprints and intensive runs.
Of course, with the two teams ranking so similarly in so many metrics, it could be down to some of the individual stars of both teams to make the difference.
For Leipzig, head coach Ole Werner knows that he can rely on the likes of Diomande and Christoph Baumgartner, both of whom have had stellar campaigns to date. Nineteen-year-old Diomande grabbed his 10th Bundesliga goal against Augsburg on Matchday 25, making him the fourth-youngest player in Bundesliga history to reach double figures for strikes in a single season, after Olaf Thon, Lukas Podolski and Jadon Sancho.
Baumgartner, meanwhile, is producing the best numbers of his Bundesliga career so far, having already scored 10 and assisted six in the league. Brazilian striker Rômulo has also proved a shrewd acquisition, scoring seven goals and providing three assists despite missing periods of the season with injuries.
Watch: Shine bright like a Diomande
For Hoffenheim, perhaps the three biggest names are Andrej Kramarić, Fisnik Asllani and Bazoumana Touré, who have contributed hugely to their team's strong league position. Kramarić has proved as reliable as ever in his 10th year with the club, scoring 10 and providing five assists; numbers that have seen him become the league’s third-highest non-German goalscorer of all time.
Asllani has continued his rise to stardom after a stunning loan campaign at Elversberg last season by scoring eight and providing five assists, while Touré - an Ivory Coast international teammate of Diomande - has had a hand in nine goals.
Behind that duo, Leon Avdullahu and Wouter Burger have been superb in allowing Hoffenheim’s abundance of attacking riches to prosper, providing the perfect midfield base.
Watch: High-speed race for top four between Diomande and Touré
A win for either side on Friday could prove huge not just in terms of getting points on the board, but also in terms of providing a psychological edge in the battle for Champions League football next season.
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