By Rich
Krzysztof Piatek made his Bundesliga debut on Friday as Hertha Berlin and FC Schalke 04 played a 0-0 draw, and Piatek also became the 28th player to feature for Hertha in the Bundesliga this season, which is more than any other club in the top league in Germany. The additional point in the table means that Hertha have now accumulated 12 points in the 8 outings since Klinsmann took over coaching duties. The key match to watch on Saturday will be that between hosts RB Leipzig and visitors Borussia Mönchengladbach, who are 1st and 3rd in the league respectively, and who are separated in the table by just 2 points. If Bayern defeat Mainz earlier in the day, however, on Saturday, Leipzig will no longer be in first place, and a loss to Gladbach would be a serious setback for Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann, who has already said he is “impatient” to bring Leipzig its 1st title. Leipzig striker Timo Werner is himself now 1 goal behind Bayern’s Robert Lewandowski in the scorers’ table. Nagelsmann’s squad, though, has a formidable opponent in Gladbach, who currently have the best defense in the league with just 21 goals conceded, and who are anticipating the return of Stefan Lainer from a suspension. On the other hand, Gladbach are the only club in the Bundesliga who have not yet beaten Leipzig in their last 7 encounters - Leipzig have won 5 and tied 2. There is 1 further statistic to keep in mind: Leipzig defeated Gladbach earlier this season, and all 3 of Leipzig’s goals came from Werner. If he could repeat this feat on Saturday, he would become the first Bundesliga player in history to have scored 23 goals in 20 matches. Looking ahead to Sunday, Paderborn will be looking to climb out of the relegation zone when they host Wolfsburg, who will be without striker Wout Weghorst, who has a torn thigh muscle. Paderborn have seemed to come to life of late, having collected 10 points in their last 8 matches, which is an improvement over 5 points in their first 11. The club is helped by the struggles of the clubs around them in the table, and are ahead of Fortuna Düsseldorf on goal differential, while only 2 points behind Bremen and 3 behind Mainz. Wolfsburg is coming off of 3 consecutive Bundesliga defeats and have taken just 7 points in their last 10 matches. One bright spot for Wolfsburg: winter signing Marin Pongracic is set to make his debut, potentially shoring up Wolfsburg’s weak defense.
Krzysztof Piatek made his Bundesliga debut on Friday as Hertha Berlin and FC Schalke 04 played a 0-0 draw, and Piatek also became the 28th player to feature for Hertha in the Bundesliga this season, which is more than any other club in the top league in Germany. The additional point in the table means that Hertha have now accumulated 12 points in the 8 outings since Klinsmann took over coaching duties. The key match to watch on Saturday will be that between hosts RB Leipzig and visitors Borussia Mönchengladbach, who are 1st and 3rd in the league respectively, and who are separated in the table by just 2 points. If Bayern defeat Mainz earlier in the day, however, on Saturday, Leipzig will no longer be in first place, and a loss to Gladbach would be a serious setback for Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann, who has already said he is “impatient” to bring Leipzig its 1st title. Leipzig striker Timo Werner is himself now 1 goal behind Bayern’s Robert Lewandowski in the scorers’ table. Nagelsmann’s squad, though, has a formidable opponent in Gladbach, who currently have the best defense in the league with just 21 goals conceded, and who are anticipating the return of Stefan Lainer from a suspension. On the other hand, Gladbach are the only club in the Bundesliga who have not yet beaten Leipzig in their last 7 encounters - Leipzig have won 5 and tied 2. There is 1 further statistic to keep in mind: Leipzig defeated Gladbach earlier this season, and all 3 of Leipzig’s goals came from Werner. If he could repeat this feat on Saturday, he would become the first Bundesliga player in history to have scored 23 goals in 20 matches. Looking ahead to Sunday, Paderborn will be looking to climb out of the relegation zone when they host Wolfsburg, who will be without striker Wout Weghorst, who has a torn thigh muscle. Paderborn have seemed to come to life of late, having collected 10 points in their last 8 matches, which is an improvement over 5 points in their first 11. The club is helped by the struggles of the clubs around them in the table, and are ahead of Fortuna Düsseldorf on goal differential, while only 2 points behind Bremen and 3 behind Mainz. Wolfsburg is coming off of 3 consecutive Bundesliga defeats and have taken just 7 points in their last 10 matches. One bright spot for Wolfsburg: winter signing Marin Pongracic is set to make his debut, potentially shoring up Wolfsburg’s weak defense.
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