Saturday's heavyweight showdown between RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich at Red Bull Arena takes centre stage in the Bundesliga this weekend.
Both sides advanced to the second round of the DFB-Pokal in midweek and return to league action with a solitary point between them in the standings.
Match preview
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RB Leipzig booked their place in the second round of the DFB-Pokal on Wednesday, claiming a hard-fought 3-2 victory over second-tier outfit Wehen Wiesbaden, thanks largely to a brace from 20-year-old prodigy Benjamin Sesko, who has netted five goals in seven appearances for his new club.
As a result, the Red Bulls head into Saturday's showdown on a six-game winning streak across all competitions, with four consecutive Bundesliga victories and a Champions League win against Young Boys preceding Wednesday's cup triumph.
Following a 3-0 victory over Bayern Munich in the DFL-Supercup, Marco Rose's men started their Bundesliga season with a 3-2 loss against Bayer Leverkusen, but they swiftly returned to winning ways with a 5-1 thrashing of Stuttgart before seeing off Union Berlin, Augsburg and Borussia Monchengladbach.
Not only have Leipzig netted 14 goals in five league games this season - putting them fourth in the scoring charts - but they have also conceded on just four occasions, meaning that only Eintracht Frankfurt boast a better defensive record than the Saxony outfit.
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Meanwhile, Bayern Munich cruised to a comfortable 4-0 victory over Preussen Munster in midweek, racking up 72% possession and 26 shots while limiting the third-tier side to three attempts on target throughout the contest.
After kicking off their Champions League campaign with a 4-3 win against Manchester United, the Bavarians hammered VfL Bochum 7-0 last weekend, with Harry Kane netting his first hat-trick for the club, taking his tally to eight goals in seven appearances this term.
Of course, Thomas Tuchel's men will still be disappointed to have suffered a 3-0 defeat to Leipzig in the DFL-Supercup, but the perennial champions have produced several standout performances since then, taking 13 points from a possible 15 in the league while dominating in both the Champions League and DFB-Pokal.
Although Leipzig, Bayer Leverkusen, Stuttgart, Hoffenheim and Borussia Dortmund remain within two points of Bayern after five matches, Die Roten will be confident of defending their crown, having won each of the previous 11 Bundesliga titles.
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Team News
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Bayern Munich forward Serge Gnabry is a doubt for Saturday's clash after sustaining a suspected broken hand during the midweek cup win, while Tarek Buchmann (muscle), Gabriel Marusic (knee) and Manuel Neuer (leg) remain sidelined through injury.
Harry Kane will return to lead the line after sitting on the bench against Preussen Munster, with Jamal Musiala, Leroy Sane and Thomas Muller expected to join the England captain in the attacking department.
RB Leipzig have several injury absentees of their own, including Willi Orban (knee), Dani Olmo (knee), Amadou Haidara (calf) and El Chadaille Bitshiabu (knee).
Benjamin Sesko will likely keep his place in the starting XI following a series of impressive displays, joining Lois Openda in the forward line, while Xavi Simons and Fabio Carvalho will offer attacking support from the flanks.
RB Leipzig possible starting lineup:
Blaswich; Henrichs, Simakan, Lukeba, Raum; Simons, Schlager, Kampl, Carvalho; Sesko, Openda
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Ulreich; Mazraoui, De Ligt, Kim, Davies; Laimer, Kimmich; Sane, Muller, Musiala; Kane
We say: RB Leipzig 2-2 Bayern Munich
Buoyed by last month's DFL-Supercup triumph, RB Leipzig will be confident of picking up another positive result against Bayern Munich, although the hosts will struggle to claim all three points as the free-scoring Bavarians aim to make amends.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Ben Morris
