TSG Hoffenheim vs Schalke 04

An all-Bundesliga DFB-Pokal third-round tie pits TSG Hoffenheim and Schalke 04 against each other at the PreZero Arena.

Less than five days ago, Hoffenheim thrashed Schalke 3-0 away from in the Bundesliga to arrest an abysmal run of three winless league matches (D2, L1) and set themselves up nicely for this contest. Back to the PreZero Arena, where they’ve been winless in their last two league outings (D1, L1), Hoffenheim will be looking to emulate their stellar form from the beginning of the season (W3). Schalke’s visit could come in handy, considering ‘Die Kraichgauer’ have come out victorious in four of their last five Bundesliga H2Hs on home turf (D1), notably netting 2+ goals in each triumph. However, scoring has been a problem for Andre Breitenreiter’s side of late, as they’ve bagged under 1.5 goals in three of their four previous home fixtures.

As for Schalke, the abovementioned H2H defeat to Hoffenheim stretched their losing Bundesliga run to three games, all of which saw Frank Kramer’s team concede at least twice. Equally unimpressive on the other side of the pitch, the ‘Miners’ have failed to get on the scoresheet in three of their five road trips to meet fellow top-flight rivals this season, netting precisely once in the other two. On the bright side, Schalke’s best away performance of the season came in the previous DFB-Pokal round, as they ran riot during a 5-0 demolition of lower-league outfit Bremer in late July. But since they’ve drawn a blank twice across their last four league visits to Hoffenheim, it’s hard to see them pulling off another similar showing.

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