The race for Europa League qualification continues on Saturday when Hoffenheim host Borussia Dortmund at the Rhein-Neckar Arena.

With four games remaining in the season, Hoffenheim sit just one place and one point above Dortmund as both teams look to clinch a spot in the top six.

Hoffenheim

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Markus Gisdol's side head into the latest round of fixtures with renewed confidence after ending their poor run of form with a 2-1 victory over relegation-threatened Hannover last weekend.

Sven Schipplock's late winner ended a run of three successive defeats in the Bundesliga, and it boosted their hopes of forcing their way into the top six over the next four games.

In truth, Hoffenheim may consider themselves fortunate to still be in the hunt for European football after a run of four games without a victory in the league before Saturday's win, but the struggles of their rivals ensured that the door is still open.

Currently sitting just two points behind fifth-placed Schalke, Gisdol will be fully aware that results against the teams around them in the table will be crucial ahead of meetings with Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt.

The progress made under Gisdol this season has been clear, and the club are in a good position to improve on last year's ninth-place finish, but with Europa League qualification still a possibility, another run of poor results will be tough for the supporters to accept.

Recent form: WDLLLW
Recent form (all competitions): DLLLLW

Borussia Dortmund

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After suffering so many disappointments earlier in the season, Jurgen Klopp still has the opportunity to end his seven-year spell at Dortmund on a high.

Their resurgence continued in midweek as they fought back from a goal behind to force penalties against Bayern Munich in the DFB-Pokal semi-final, before clinching the win with a dramatic 2-0 shootout triumph.

It was the type of performance which has been too rare in a frustrating campaign, but the team's defensive stubbornness and response to extended spells of pressure will come as a huge boost to Klopp, whose final game in charge will be the final against Wolfsburg in Berlin.

Focus switches to a top-six finish this weekend, and although previous seasons have been far more successful, a strong finish to the campaign in the league will bring optimism to the fans ahead of Thomas Tuchel's arrival in the summer.

As a result of their return to form in the Bundesliga, Dortmund have two opportunities to earn a Europa League spot and they could climb up to fifth in the table if results go their way this weekend.

Last week's comfortable win over Frankfurt made it back-to-back league wins after defeats to Bayern Munich and Borussia Monchengladbach, and Klopp will be keen to prove that this squad can succeed without him as he targets wins from the final four games of the campaign.

Recent form: DWLLWW
Recent form (all competitions): LWLWWW

Team News

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Dortmund were handed boosts in midweek when Ilkay Gundogan, who has rejected the offer of a new deal from the club, and Marco Reus returned to the starting lineup against Bayern, and they both came through 120 minutes without cause for concern.

Roman Weidenfeller remains a doubt with a back injury, which means Mitchell Langerak should keep his place in goal, and Sebastian Kehl could be handed a start should Klopp decide to freshen up his midfield.

Hoffenheim boss Gisdol will be forced to consider handing a start to Schipplock after his heroics last weekend, and the striker could come into the side as a replacement for Adam Szalai.

Hoffenheim possible starting lineup:
Baumann, Abraham, Bicakcic, Toljan, Rudy, Strobl, Polanski, Schwegler, Firmino, Schipplock, Modeste

Dortmund possible starting lineup:
Langerak, Durm, Sokratis, Hummels, Schmelzer, Kehl, Gundogan, Reus, Mkhitaryan, Blaszczykowski, Aubameyang

Head To Head

Hoffenheim will still be recovering from the last meeting between these two sides less than a month ago after Dortmund secured a dramatic 3-2 victory in the last eight of the DFB-Pokal, and there was disappointment in the reverse fixture back in December when Ilkay Gundogan earned a 1-0 win for his side.

Dortmund are on a three-game winning run against Hoffenheim, and Klopp's side have lost just one of the last seven matches with Saturday's opponents.

Sejad Salihovic scored the only goal of the game when Hoffenheim last tasted victory over Dortmund at the Rhein-Neckar Arena.

We say: Hoffenheim 1-1 Borussia Dortmund

Both sides will be full of confidence following morale-boosting victories, but Dortmund could be forced to battle fatigue after their efforts against Bayern in midweek. There could be very little to separate two teams who are desperate for victories at this stage of the season.

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