Wolfsburg's hopes of Champions League football could be boosted should they beat hosts Augsburg at WWK Arena on Saturday in the Bundesliga.
The hosts are 11th with 35 points and could qualify for Europe given they are only four points from sixth-placed RB Leipzig, but the Wolves are in seventh place with 38 points following their 1-1 draw with St Pauli on March 8 and are four points from fourth-placed Eintracht Frankfurt.
Match preview
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Augsburg emerged as 1-0 victors against Borussia Dortmund last Saturday thanks to Jeffrey Gouweleeuw's 23rd-minute header, and his goal was his side's only shot on target in the entire game.
Gouweleeuw's goal saw his club score in a match for just the second time in six outings, though they have now kept five consecutive clean sheets.
The home side held Wolfsburg to a 1-1 stalemate in the reverse fixture, extending their unbeaten streak against the Wolves to five games having won three and drawn two clashes in that period.
Augsburg boss Jess Thorup has overseen three draws and two victories in his side's last five matches, and his team are also unbeaten in their last nine in the Bundesliga, winning five in that time.
The Fuggerstadter have proven resilient at WWK Arena given they have only succumbed to defeat twice in their 10 most recent games at home, emerging victorious on five occasions.
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Opponents Wolfsburg created numerous chances in the final third - producing 12 of their 16 shots from inside the box - but they also faced nine from inside their own penalty area and faced more non-penalty xG (1.64).
Their defensive frailty has seen them concede in nine of their past 10 matches, and their record of 39 goals conceded in the Bundesliga makes them the joint worst defensive side in the top 11.
Head coach Ralph Hasenhuttl's side rank as the division's fifth-highest scorers (49) but they have only found the back of the net seven times in their last six top-flight outings.
To their credit, the Wolves have only been beaten in one of their eight most recent games – drawing five – and are undefeated in seven Bundesliga matches, though they triumphed just twice.
Wolfsburg's away record has been strong in recent weeks, with the club only succumbing to defeat in two of their past 10 on the road in the league, winning six times.
Team News
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Augsburg come into the clash without defenders Robert Gumny, Henri Koudossou and Mads Valentin Pedersen, and their absences may mean that Chrislain Matsima, Gouweleeuw and Cedric Zesiger will start in defence.
Given midfielder Yusuf Kabadayi is not scheduled to return to action until late April, Kristijan Jakic and Frank Onyeka may be trusted to play in the middle of the pitch.
Striker Phillip Tietz could be supported by Fredrik Jensen and Alexis Claude-Maurice considering Mergim Berisha is likely to miss another few days due to injury.
As for Wolfsburg, they will be missing several stars on Saturday, including goalkeepers Kamil Grabara and Niklas Klinger, as well as defenders Mads Roerslev and Rogerio.
Marius Muller is almost certain to be fielded between the posts, and he is likely to start behind Kilian Fischer, Denis Vavro, Konstantinos Koulierakis and Joakim Maehle.
Elsewhere, forwards Lukas Nmecha, Bartosz Bialek, Kevin Paredes and Lovro Majer have also been ruled out, making Jonas Wind and Mohamed El Amine Amoura the most probable candidates to feature up front.
Augsburg possible starting lineup:
Dahmen; Matsima, Gouweleeuw, Zesiger; Wolf, Jakic, Onyeka, Giannoulis; Jensen, Claude-Maurice; Tietz
Wolfsburg possible starting lineup:
Muller; Fischer, Vavro, Koulierakis, Maehle; Olsen, Svanberg, Arnold, Tomas; Wind, Amoura
We say: Augsburg 1-1 Wolfsburg
Augsburg will be a challenging opponent for Wolfsburg considering they have not often been beaten at home.
Wolfsburg have been subpar defensively in recent weeks, and their vulnerability at the back could cost them victory on Saturday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Lewis Nolan
