Preview: Borussia Dortmund vs Hoffenheim - prediction, team news, lineups

Top four contenders Borussia Dortmund and Hoffenheim will close out Sunday’s Bundesliga action when they meet in a tasty encounter at Signal Iduna Park.

The Prussians are unbeaten in the league for almost two months, while Die Kraichgauer continue to exceed expectations with their bold push for Champions League qualification.

Match preview

Fresh from their narrow DFB-Pokal defeat to Bayer Leverkusen, Niko Kovac and his men will be looking for a return to winning ways.

Tuesday’s loss marked the first time this season that Dortmund failed to find the back of the net and the fourth successive domestic game in which they have failed to keep a clean sheet.

Die Borussen have been hit-and-miss in recent weeks, losing 4-1 away at Man City and being held to draws away at Hamburger SV and Stuttgart, while also picking up a 4-0 victory over Villarreal.

Consistency is evidently a rare commodity at Signal Iduna Park, though with just three Bundesliga games remaining before the winter break, Dortmund will be looking to pick up maximum points.

BVB are already nine points adrift of league leaders Bayern Munich, and if they fall further behind, they may have to say goodbye to their title aspirations for another season.

Speaking of high aspirations, Hoffenheim have been the surprise package of the season so far, picking up 23 points from 12 games and boasting one of the most impressive attacking records in the league.

Only three clubs have scored more goals than Die Kraichgauer this term, and only the current top three boast better defensive records.

Christian Ilzer has overseen a six-match unbeaten run in the league, with five of those games ending in victories for Hoffenheim.

The most recent one was last weekend as Ilzer oversaw a 3-0 home win over a struggling Augsburg side – the first Hoffenheim clean sheet in five games.

The team now find themselves just two points behind third-placed Dortmund, and they would end the weekend inside the top four should they bag their eighth league victory of the season.

Borussia Dortmund Bundesliga form:

L W W D D W

Borussia Dortmund form (all competitions):

L D D W W L

Hoffenheim Bundesliga form:

W W W W D W

Hoffenheim form (all competitions):

W L W W D W

Team News

We are almost at the halfway mark of the campaign, yet Dortmund are doing rather well on the injury front and come into Sunday’s game with a near fully fit squad.

Their only concern is around defender Niklas Sule, who has been struggling with a nasty toe injury. The player was struggling to put on his boots a few weeks ago, but he is now nearing full recovery.

Striker Serhou Guirassy has failed to score in his last four domestic games, though he did rattle the net twice against Villarreal in a recent Champions League game.

Hoffenheim, on the other hand, are set to be without Japanese defender Koki Machida, who has been struggling with a knee injury and is not expected back until January.

Czech forward Adam Hlozek has missed the entire season with a foot injury, but there is light at the end of the tunnel for the 23-year-old, who could make his return very soon.

Borussia Dortmund possible starting lineup:

Kobel; Anselmino, Anton, Schlotterbeck; Ryerson, Sabitzer, Nmecha, Svensson; Adeyemi, Brandt; Guirassy

Hoffenheim possible starting lineup:

Baumann; Coufal, Hranac, Hajdari, Bernardo; Avdullahu, Promel, Burger; Kramaric; Lemperle, Toure

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