Augsburg and Union Berlin will be looking to return to winning ways in the Bundesliga when they square off at the WWK Arena on Friday night.
The two teams were forced to settle for a share of the spoils the last time that they butted heads five months ago when they played out a 1-1 draw at Stadion An der Alten Forsterei.
Match preview
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After winning four games in a row between February 25 and March 16, scoring 12 goals in the process, Augsburg have since failed to win their last two Bundesliga matches against FC Koln and Hoffenheim.
Die Fuggerstadter were forced to settle for a 1-1 home draw with Koln before losing 3-1 at Hoffenheim last weekend in a contest that captain Ermedin Demirovic netted his 15th goal of the season.
Augsburg have already picked up 36 points and two points more than they managed in the entirety of last season with six games of the current campaign still to play. However, their hopes of sneaking into the European positions are hanging by a threat, as they sit six points adrift of Eintracht Frankfurt in sixth spot.
Having said that, finishing in their current position of seventh could be enough for Augsburg to qualify for the Europa Conference League if Bundesliga champions-elect Bayer Leverkusen, who have already secured at top-six finish, win the DFB-Pokal.
Jess Thorup's men will fancy their chances of claiming maximum points on Friday as they have won each of their last three home meetings with Union Berlin, while they have only suffered defeat in two of their last 10 Bundesliga matches at the WWK Arena - losing against Leverkusen (1-0) and Bayern Munich (3-2).
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After finishing fourth last season and qualifying for the Champions League, Union Berlin remain in danger of slipping into the relegation zone this term and were condemned to their 15th Bundesliga defeat of the campaign by Leverkusen last weekend.
Robin Gosens received his first-ever Bundesliga red card for two bookable offenses on the stroke of half time, shortly before Florian Wirtz netted the only goal of the game from the penalty spot after Christopher Trimmel was deemed to have handled inside the area.
Nenad Bjelica's side have lost three of their last five league games, albeit against three of the current top five, and they remain 13th in the table, six points above 16th-placed Mainz 05 in the relegation playoff position.
Union Berlin have struggled on the road throughout this season as they have won only two, drawn three and lost nine of their 14 Bundesliga away fixtures; only VfL Bochum have lost as many away games this term, while the Irons Ones have scored the fewest away goals (nine) in the division thus far.
Bjelica's men have picked up five points from their last four matches on their travels, though, including three points claimed from a 1-0 win at Hoffenheim and a solitary point collected from a goalless stalemate with Frankfurt, so there is reason for the Irons Ones to be optimistic of success on Friday.
Team News
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Augsburg will be without Niklas Dorsch (foot), Raphael Framberger, Robert Gumny (both knee), Elvis Rexhbecaj (ankle) and Reece Oxford (illness), while Iago (foot), Fredrik Jensen (calf) and Kristijan Jakic (Achilles) are all injury doubts, the latter was forced off early in the first half last weekend.
The potential absence of Jakic could see Tim Breithaupt recalled to start in centre-midfield alongside Arne Engels and Arne Maier, while Mads Pedersen is expected to continue at left-back if Iago is not deemed fit to feature.
Kevin Mbabu was not 100% fit to play against Hoffenheim last time out, but he is expected to return at right-back on Friday, which would allow Ruben Vargas to push further forward and provide support in attack for Demirovic and Phillip Tietz.
As for Union Berlin, Jerome Roussillon and Jakob Busk remain sidelined with calf injuries, while Janik Haberer and Yorbe Vertessen will have muscle problems assessed ahead of kickoff.
Both Gosens and Lucas Tousart are ruled out through suspension, the latter picked up his fifth yellow card last weekend, so Josip Juranovic and Aissa Laidouni could be tasked with playing at left wing-back and in centre-midfield respectively.
After missing the visit of former club Leverkusen last time out, Kevin Volland is set to return to the first XI to partner either Benedict Hollerbach or Brenden Aaronson in attack.
Augsburg possible starting lineup:
Dahmen; Mbabu, Gouweleeuw, Uduokhai, Pedersen; Engels, Breithaupt, Maier; Vargas; Tietz, Demirovic
Union Berlin possible starting lineup:
Ronnow; Doekhi, Vogt, Leite; Khedira; Trimmel, Laidouni, Schafer, Juranovic; Volland, Aaronson
We say: Augsburg 2-1 Union Berlin
There has been little to separate these two teams in recent years, but Augsburg have had the edge and will be regarded as favourites for Friday's contest on home soil.
After failing to score in four of their last five games, Union Berlin will hope to breach an Augsburg backline that has kept only two clean sheets all season, but that may not be enough to get the better of the hosts this time around.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
