Preview: Eintracht Trier vs RB Leipzig - prediction, team news, lineups

Eintracht Trier face the unenviable task of trying to get the better of visitors RB Leipzig at Moselstadion in the first round of the DFB-Pokal on Saturday.

Currently competing in the fourth tier of German football, the hosts know that Leipzig will be seen as overwhelming favourites, but the DFB-Pokal has a strong history of teams from lower leagues knocking out giants.

Match preview

Eintracht Trier are in the Regionalliga Southwest division, and they are eighth with three points after two matchweeks, with their most recent result a 2-1 triumph against VfR Mannheim on August 16.

Saturday represents the club's first time in the DFB-Pokal since their exit to Borussia Dortmund in the first round in 2016-17, which was their third consecutive elimination at the first stage of the competition.

In fact, the hosts have not made it past the first round in 18 of their 31 entries into the tournament, while they have been eliminated in the first round in 10 of their last 13 DFB-Pokal campaigns.

Manager Thomas Klasen's side have struggled at home considering they have lost three of their past seven competitive fixtures at Moselstadion while only winning twice.

They failed to find the back of the net in four of those seven home matches, while they kept just two clean sheets.

Leipzig will view 2026-27 as a success given they finished third in the Bundesliga and earned their place back in the Champions League, finishing in the top four for the eighth time in 10 seasons.

Die Roten Bullen's history in the DFB-Pokal is more limited than many other top-flight clubs due to the fact they were formed in 2009, though they have still managed to win the tournament twice (2021–22 and 2022–23).

Ole Werner was in charge when the team lost 2-0 to eventual DFB-Pokal champions Bayern Munich in February, while the club were also beaten in the semi-finals by 2024-25 winners Stuttgart.

Martin Demichelis has replaced Werner in the dugout, and he has overseen three victories and two defeats in five friendlies, though both losses were his two most recent results.

Leipzig's away performances in 2025-26 were inconsistent, with the visitors losing four and winning three of their final seven outings on the road.

Eintracht Trier form:

RB Leipzig friendly form:

Team News

Eintracht Trier goalkeeper Leon-Oumar Wechsel will hope that centre-backs Noah Awassi, Tim Corsten and Gianluca Pelzer can prevent him from facing a barrage of shots.

Mateo Kritzer is a candidate to be stationed at the base of midfield, while Shawn Blum and Damjan Marceta could lead the line up front.

Versatile RB Leipzig defender Lutsharel Geertruida is a likely inclusion, and he could take the place of Castello Lukeba next to Willi Orban.

Midfielder Christoph Baumgartner would have been an option had he not suffered a thigh injury in June, but perhaps Ezechiel Banzuzi, Arthur Vermeeren and Andrija Maksimovic will play instead.

Ayodele Thomas could be trusted to start on the left side of attack, though he would benefit playing in the same frontline as an experienced star like Antonio Nusa.

Eintracht Trier possible starting lineup:

Wechsel; Awassi, Corsten, Pelzer; Heinz, Spang, Kritzer, Tekerci, Lohei; Blum, Marceta

RB Leipzig possible starting lineup:

Vandevoordt; Baku, Orban, Geertruida, Raum; Maksimovic, Vermeeren, Banzuzi; Nusa, Gomis, Thomas

We say: Eintracht Trier 0-4 RB Leipzig

Eintracht Trier have struggled to produce enough in the final third, especially at home, and they will find it difficult to break down their Bundesliga opponents.

RB Leipzig will be expected to win, and even if complacency plague's their performance this weekend, they should have enough quality to get over the line.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.