Our next opponents: TSG on the way to greater consistency

Position

It was the first away defeat of the season for TSG but the disappointment at the cup exit away to Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night is not excessive. That is primarily due to Hoffenheim producing another decent performance in the 1-0 defeat at the Signal Iduna Park. The main factor for the narrow defeat was the absence of the ability to finish according to defender Kevin Akpoguma after the match that saw TSG miss the chance to take the lead on two minutes. Mergim Berisha was denied by a clearance off the line by Nico Schlotterbeck. "BVB were then more dominant and had more of the play," said Hoffenheim's coach Pellegrino Matarazzo in an honest assessment. "Despite having a certain level of control, we didn't succeed in making the most of our chances in the second half. Therefore, we didn't deserve to go through."

In contrast, the Bundesliga campaign has been very good for TSG. The club has made the best start to the season in their Bundesliga history with 15 points from seven games. There was a setback with a 3-1 home defeat against Eintracht Frankfurt but the team from Sinsheim secured a 3-1 victory last weekend away to VfB Stuttgart, the surprise team of the season. "It was very important after the last match to show the right response," said Wout Weghorst. Hoffenheim are currently sixth on 18 points just three behind positions three and four. There is a surprising contrast between the home and away records: The Matarazzo team have only won one out of four home games but have not dropped a point to date in five away fixtures.

Personnel

TSG have had to manage without top star Andrej Kramaric for four weeks. The Croat suffered a thigh injury at the end of September. The striker was not on board for the cup game in Dortmund on Wednesday night. But it is possible that Kramaric will be available against the Werkself on Saturday. The same applies to Stanley Nsoki with the defender recently ruled out due to problems with his knee. There is a question mark over the two wingbacks Robert Skov (Achilles) and Pavel Kaderabek (calf) being able to play against Bayer 04. Both missed the cup tie at BVB due to injury.

Ozan Kabak is again an option to start in the back three. The Turk missed the game against Stuttgart due to a shoulder injury but came on for Kevin Akpoguma after the hour mark in Dortmund. Kabak was sent off for a second bookable offence near the end of the game but the suspension from the DFB Pokal tie does not apply to the Bundesliga. The two other positions at the back should go to John Brooks and Kevin Vogt. In midfield it remains to be seen whether Matarazzo will again opt for Florian Grillitsch. The Austrian missed the Dortmund game due to a thigh problem. Grischa Prömel is indispensable in the middle of the park and, along with goalkeeper Oliver Baumann, is the only TSG player to start every game so far this term.

Maximilian Beier is the shooting star at TSG Hoffenheim. The captain of the Germany U21 team was on loan to Hannover 96 for two years but he has got off to a flying start on his return to TSG with six goals and four assists this term. Beier is currently among the top four scorers and providers in the league. "Maxi has progressed from the academy to the first team at TSG and he is a prime example of the Hoffenheim approach," said Alexander Rosen, sporting managing director, about the development of the 21-year-old forward who recently extended his contract to 2027. New signing Wout Weghorst, who was on loan from Burnley in the summer, has played alongside him up front in recent matches.

Performers

Let's start with the goalkeeper: Oliver Baumann, as the kicker recently wrote, is "more and more valuable to TSG like a well-matured whiskey." The 33-year-old captain produced another outstanding performance in the 3-2 win at Stuttgart last weekend. Baumann, who has now been in goal at TSG for over nine years, saved a penalty in that match and his twelve penalty saves put him in the top ten of keepers in Germany. Baumann saved a penalty at Heidenheim on matchday two (3-2).

The win against the newly promoted club started an impressive run for TSG. Hoffenheim have won all five away games in the Bundesliga so far. That puts them top of the away form table and, after nine matchdays, they already have more points on the road (15) than in the previous season (13). That is partly due to the strength in transition of TSG with three goals scored in fast counter-attacks. Another factor is set pieces. Hoffenheim have scored seven goals from dead balls so far – only FC Bayern have scored one more from such game situations. The Matarazzo team is in the top five of the most effective teams in attack with 20 goals netted so far. Hoffenheim have a prolific trio up front in Beier (6), Kramaric (4) and Weghorst (1).

Problems

It is surprising that TSG have not been able to show their attacking strength at home to date. The only win at the PreZero Arena was against VfL Wolfsburg (3-1). The other three home games against SC Freiburg (1-2), Borussia Dortmund (1-3) and Eintracht Frankfurt (1-3) all ended in defeat. Against Eintracht it was primarily due to "shooting ourselves in the foot with individual errors," according to Matarazzo. The fact is that, "playing against deep-lying opponents is not currently one of our strengths." The coach sees potential for improvement in his team with the right handling of game situations. "For me, the one key area of development is being able to have the right answer in every phase of the game to be more efficient and able to play with 100% conviction."

Prediction

In contrast to last season, where TSG only managed to avoid relegation late on, this campaign should not be as turbulent. Pellegrino Matarazzo has the job of taking the team back to their old strength on the pitch. The 45-year-old coach is primarily there to bring more consistency and stability to the team. The last two seasons have seen considerable ups and downs in performance levels. TSG now appear to be on the right track. They are currently the strongest away team in the league. If they can secure more wins in Sinsheim then TSG Hoffenheim may well be able to compete for a European spot again after three disappointing seasons with finishes of twelfth (2022/23), ninth (2021/22) and eleventh (2020/21). The next test comes on Saturday with the visit of the league leaders from Leverkusen.