Borussia Monchengladbach vs Stuttgart

Borussia-Park is the venue as mid-table Borussia Monchengladbach and bottom-half Stuttgart go head-to-head in an exciting Bundesliga encounter.

Despite grabbing a first-half lead, two late goals, including a 97th-minute decider, condemned Monchengladbach to a 2-1 defeat at Union Berlin, extending their winless Bundesliga streak to three matches (D1, L2). Head coach Daniel Farke described the result as ‘disappointing,’ as ‘Die Fohlen’ dropped six points adrift of the top-four race. Playing at come may bolster Gladbach’s bid to get back to winning ways, given that they’ve racked up four wins from six home league outings this season (L2), though the latest one yielded an underwhelming 3-1 loss to Eintracht Frankfurt. Stuttgart could yet again prove formidable opposition after holding Gladbach winless in five consecutive top-flight H2Hs preceding this meeting (D2, L3). But since they’ve claimed 12 of their 16 Bundesliga points this season on home turf, the hosts might feel comfortable before the kick-off.

On the other hand, visiting Stuttgart pulled off a come-from-behind 2-1 home triumph over fellow bottom-half Bundesliga strugglers Augsburg last weekend, making it three wins from four competitive matches (L1). The credit for Stuttgart’s mini-revival in the wake of Pellegrino Matarazzo’s dismissal goes to interim boss Michael Wimmer, who’s led them to two wins in three Bundesliga matches (L1) following his predecessor’s poor nine-game winless leaague start (D5, L4). However, a keenly-contested battle against relegation is still on for ‘Die Schwaben,’ with 16th-placed Bayer Leverkusen only two poinst behind. Stuttgart’s abysmal five-match winless form on the road (D3, L2) doesn’t bode well for their bid to beat Gladbach at Borussia-Park for only the second time in eight top-flight matches at this venue (W1, D3, L3).