The second round of the DFB-Pokal will see third-tier outfit Arminia Bielefeld taking on top-flight opponents Union Berlin at SchucoArena on Wednesday night.
The hosts are currently in third place in the 3. Liga standings after 12 matches, while the visitors are in fourth place in the Bundesliga after the first eight matches of the season.
Match preview
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Arminia Bielefeld earned their spot in round two of the DFB-Pokal by pulling off an against-the-odds 2-0 victory over Hannover 96 in the opening round of the competition in mid-August.
Andre Becker and Louis Oppie were the players on target on the day, netting both goals in the first half before holding firm against a late onslaught by the second-division outfit during the closing stages.
Die Arminen are now looking to reach the third round of this competition for the first time since the 2016-17 season when they went all the way to the quarter-final before being knocked out by Eintracht Frankfurt.
Notably, the hosts have bowed out of the DFB-Pokal in this round in each of the last three seasons, with two of those matches played against top-flight opponents Stuttgart and Mainz 05.
While the odds are stacked against the hosts in this match, they have been in good form on their home patch in the lead-up, unbeaten in their last four matches in all competitions, including three wins and a draw.
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Meanwhile, Union Berlin's opening match of this competition saw them take on Regionalliga team Greifswalder, who put up a spirited effort but lost 1-0 with Yorbe Vertessen scoring the only goal of the match.
Since then, Die Eisernen have been in sensational form in the top flight, conceding only one defeat in their last eight league matches, while they will enter this one unbeaten in their last three (W2 D1 L0).
Union's excellent record to date has earned them 15 points in eight league matches, just five off Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich, which is a major improvement from finishing last season as the first side above the drop zone.
Bo Svensson's side were knocked out of the DFB-Pokal in this round by Stuttgart last season, though they did reach the last eight in the preceding season and made it to the semi-final in 2021-22.
These two last faced each other back in February 2022, and it was Arminia Bielefeld who emerged as 1-0 winners, though that was one of only five wins they managed that season which ended in relegation from the top flight.
Team News
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The hosts are expected to be without at least two players for this match, with striker Joel Felix ruled out with a thigh injury and centre-back Jeredy Hilterman sidelined with an injured foot.
Summer signing Andre Becker scored his first goal for Bielefeld in the first round of this competition, but he has failed to find the back of the net in 12 league appearances since, though he has netted three times in the Westfalenpokal.
In the lead-up to this match, Union Berlin announced the extension of Dutch defender Danilho Doekhi's contract at the club, though the length of the new deal has yet to be disclosed.
Doekhi is likely to be one of the players rested for this match, though, after playing the full 90 against Eintracht Frankfurt at the weekend, in which case he will join the injured trio of Lucas Tousart, Josip Juranovic and Yannic Stein on the sidelines.
Arminia Bielefeld possible starting lineup:
Kersken; Lannert, Grosser, Schneider, Oppie; Kunze, Schreck, Corboz; Young, Kania, Sarenren-Bazee
Union Berlin possible starting lineup:
Ronnow; Jaeckel, Vogt, Querfeld; Haberer, Schafer, Khedira, Gosens; Benes, Hollerbach; Pefok
We say: Arminia Bielefeld 1-2 Union Berlin
Union Berlin are likely to make several changes in personnel for this match ahead of their league fixture against Bayern Munich over the weekend, and that may enable Arminia Bielefeld to find a goal in this one, though we feel it will not be enough to see them progress to the next round.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Devesh Jaganath
