On Saturday afternoon, Hoffenheim host Bochum at the PreZero Arena, as the home team continues their efforts to finish in the Bundesliga’s top four and qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Hoffenheim’s bid to play in European football’s elite competition has hit a few road bumps along the way of late, as they have picked up just a point from their last two matches in the Bundesliga.
However, on closer examination, Sebastian Hoeness’ team are still in a healthy position to make the top four this season.
Those two winless games were a 1-1 draw at home to Bayern Munich and a 3-0 defeat at Hertha Berlin. The latter ended a run of five games unbeaten in the Bundesliga for Hoffenheim, four of which they had won.
The home side is now just a point outside the top four, in what has become an incredibly close race for the Champions League spots in the Bundesliga.
Bochum’s main priority this season was to preserve their top-flight status in German football after winning promotion from the second-tier last season.
While they are not yet guaranteed safety, the visitors are six points clear of the relegation play-off spot and seven points clear of the automatic relegation spots. A few more victories this season should be enough to confirm their place in the German top-flight for next season.
Despite their relatively comfortable position in the table, Bochum’s recent league form will be a concern, as they have won just once in five league outings, having also suffered three defeats in their last four games in the German top-flight.
Thomas Reis’ team has also failed to win in any of their last five away matches in the Bundesliga.
Forebet predicts that Hoffenheim will record a victory in a high-scoring encounter to boost their chances of landing one of those four Champions League spots for next season.
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