Wolfsburg's quest for European football continues on Saturday when they travel to Weserstadion in their 24th Bundesliga game of the season, where they will face Werder Bremen.
Werder Bremen are currently 12th with 30 points and lost 5-0 against Freiburg in the league last Friday, whereas the Wolves are eighth with 34 points but were held to a 1-1 stalemate by 17th-placed VfL Bochum on February 22.
Match preview
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The hosts were outplayed by Freiburg, with the victors creating four big chances while only facing a non-penalty xG total of 0.46.
The Green-Whites were also beaten 2-1 in the DFB-Pokal quarter-final by Arminia Bielefeld on Tuesday, a particularly embarrassing defeat against a team in the third tier of German football.
Boss Ole Werner did oversee a 4-2 victory against Wolfsburg on October 20, a match in which they trailed 1-0 after 19 minutes but led 4-1 by the 72nd minute.
Werder Bremen have been beaten in four consecutive games – conceding 13 times while scoring just two – and have only won one of their last nine fixtures in all competitions.
In their past four outings at Weserstadion, Werner's side have lost twice, drawn once and triumphed once, though they did win three of their prior four at home.
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As for the visitors, they only avoided defeat against Bochum thanks to Mattias Svanberg's 81st-minute equaliser, and fans will be concerned that the relegation-threatened side produced more shots (9) from inside the box than the Wolves did (8).
Wolfsburg were also beaten in the DFB-Pokal quarter-final on Wednesday, losing 1-0 against RB Leipzig and boss Ralph Hasenhuttl will be alarmed that his team failed to create a single big chance.
A victory for the away side would be significant given just five points separate them from fourth-placed Freiburg, who occupy the final Champions League qualification spot in the division.
Wolfsburg have struggled for victories in the past weeks, drawing four and losing two of their last seven.
The Wolves' away record is mixed, with the club having failed to achieve victory in four of their six most recent fixtures on the road, losing three and being held to a stalemate in one.
Team News
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Werder Bremen striker Andre Silva is likely to be supported by Marco Grull and Romano Schmid considering Keke Topp and Marvin Ducksch have been ruled out due to injury.
In defence, Marco Friedl will not be in the starting XI as a result of ligament damage, while Milos Veljkovic's back injury could keep him out until the middle of March.
Julian Malatini may come into the team in place of Veljkovic, and he could be joined in a back three by Niklas Stark and Anthony Jung.
Meanwhile, Wolfsburg come into the clash with several absentees, including goalkeepers Kamil Grabara and Niklas Klinger, as well as defender Rogerio.
Expect Kilian Fischer, Denis Vavro, Konstantinos Koulierakis and Joakim Maehle to start in front of Marius Muller.
However, forwards Lukas Nmecha, Bartosz Bialek, Kevin Paredes and Lovro Majer will not be available, so perhaps Jonas Wind and Mohamed El Amine Amoura will partner each other up front.
With midfielder Maximilian Arnold set to miss out on action until the middle of April, Mattias Svanberg and Aster Vranckx are probable candidates to play in a double pivot.
Werder Bremen possible starting lineup:
Zetterer; Malatini, Stark, Jung; Weiser, Lynen, Stage, Agu; Grull, Schmid; Silva
Wolfsburg possible starting lineup:
Muller; Fischer, Vavro, Koulierakis, Maehle; Tomas, Svanberg, Vranckx, Wimmer; Wind, Amoura
We say: Werder Bremen 1-2 Wolfsburg
Wolfsburg should be confident of creating chances in the final third considering Werder Bremen have struggled to avoid defeat in recent weeks.
While the visitors are in mixed form, the hosts' poor showings their past matches should make the Wolves favourites on Saturday.
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Lewis Nolan
