One of the teams that have shone brightest this season when it has come to results in the Bundesliga has been Wolfsburg. The Wolves are right in the fight for the Champions League spots, as they welcome beleaguered Schalke to the Volkswagen Arena on Saturday afternoon.
The game looks like the perfect opportunity to recover from back-to-back defeats in the German Cup and Bundesliga by RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim respectively.
The latter defeat ended a nine-game unbeaten run for the Wolves in the German top-flight, which had moved them up to third place in the table.
Oliver Glasner’s team are still five points clear of fifth-place Bayer Leverkusen, so they are still in a good position to book their place in next season’s Champions League.
The home side has been rock solid in defence of late, as they had kept seven straight clean sheets in the German top-flight.
Wolfsburg have turned the Volkswagen Arena into something of a fortress of late in the Bundesliga, as they are 11 matches unbeaten on home soil, having also kept clean sheets in four of their previous five home outings.
Despite a desperate campaign in the Bundesliga, Schalke are not quite yet doomed to life in the second tier. However, that is due to the teams above them struggling for form too.
The Royal Blues are rock-bottom of the table, nine points adrift of 16th place Arminia Bielefeld, so all hope is not lost just yet.
Last time out the visitors drew 0-0 with relegation rivals Mainz, which could prove to be a crucial result, as a Mainz win would have brought Schalke closer to life in Bundesliga 2.
Schalke under their fifth boss of the season Dimitrios Grammozis, are still winless in their last nine games. That run looks certain to continue in this game, as Wolfsburg will be determined to get back to winning ways.
Forebet predicts that Wolfsburg will record a relatively comfortable win in a low-scoring game to push Schalke closer to the Bundesliga trap door.