Thursday evening will see the first leg of the Bundesliga relegation play-off between two neighbours from Lower Saxony as VfL Wolfsburg meet Eintracht Braunschweig. Here are all the key facts you need to know.
2016/17 season: Wolfsburg slipped into the relegation places after a late 2-1 defeat against fellow strugglers Hamburg, and picked up just four points from their last five games - which included a 6-0 drubbing by Bayern Munich. On the other hand Braunschweig go into the game in better form, with the only real blemish coming on matchday 33 following a 0-6 thrashing by Arminia Bielefeld. Before that Eintracht won three games in a and closed out the season with a 2-1 win over Karlsruher to secure third place in Bundesliga 2.
Head to head: Wolfsburg and Braunschweig have met eight times, with the scales currently tipped in favour of the second division side, who have won four times to Wolfsburg’s three with one draw. The most recent meetings came in 2013/14 in the Bundesliga when Braunschweig 2-0 with a 1-1. The pair also faced off in Bundesliga 2 in 1992/93, with both games going the way of Wolfsburg 4-1 at home before a 1-0 win on the road in Braunschweig. There have also been Regional League meetings between the two. In 1973/74 the Wolves were triumphant 2-0 before Braunschweig gained revenge 4-2 in the corresponding fixture. Braunschweig reached Bundesliga 2 after beating Wolfsburg in a play-off in 1988, gaining promotion after 4-2 and 2-1 wins.
Training camp vs. Routine: After defeat last weekend, Andreas Jonker took his side to the Dutch town of De Lutte to prepare for this play-off, with Joncker preferring the calm peace and quiet of the facilities used by Ajax to prepare for the new season for the past 20 years. “We had many options but what we wanted most of all was the peace and quiet, which is without doubt the best plan for us,” said the 54-year old. Braunschweig meanwhile stayed in familiar surroundings to prepare for the clash. “Our team morale is strong and there are enough quiet places in Braunschweig to plan and prepare in peace,” said Lieberknecht.
Top goal scorer: Germany international Mario Gomez scored 16 goals and ended up fifth in the goalscoring charts. Braunschweig bring two sharp shooters to the table with Christoffer Nyman scoring 11 times and Domi Kumbele finding the net 13 times this season.
Weak attack:Apart from Gomey Wolfsburg’s front line consistently failed to find the net in 2016/17. The side managed just 34 goals all season, a record only not bettered by Hamburg (33) and relegated Darmstadt (28).
Old friends: Braunschweig’s Onel Hernandez has a strong Wolfsburg connection. The 24-year-old played for the Wolfsburg reserves from Summer 2014 before switching to Braunschweig in July 2016. He will return to his old stomping ground tonight.
Regulars: Gomez has played more games than anyone else for Wolfsburg. The attacker has played 35 times this season, with Maximilian Arnold the next best figure turning out 34 times. Eintracht’s most featured player is goalkeeper Jasmin Fejzec who has played 35 times for his club this season (including cup games).
Squad: Three players were missing from Wolfsburg’s retreat to De Lutte. Sebastian Jung is out with a muscle tear while Riechedly Bazoer was diagnosed with a meniscus tear after an MRT scan on Monday. The midfielderm must now undergo surgery but should be fit for the start of training in July. Jakub Blaszczykoswki should be fit however. Eintrachts injury list is a little shorter, with only those already on the long term injury list unlikely to play a part. Marcel Correia and Phil Ofosu-Ayeh.
Quotes: “We obviously did not want this game but we will remain professional to ensure that we do not need to worry about relegation for next season,” said Wolfsburg sporting director Dr Tim Schuhmacher.
“We will give VfL the respect they deserve, and hopefully they will do the same for us. We know how good they are as a group and our players are aware of this already,” said Braunschweig captain Ken Reichel. “They may have finished 16th but they have so much quality. We are going to be focused on preparing in order to get the best possible result from both of the legs,” added Braunschweig coach Torsetn Lieberknecht, also highlighting that his team have “another chance to write history.”
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Thursday evening will see the first leg of the Bundesliga relegation play-off between two neighbours from Lower Saxony as VfL Wolfsburg meet Eintracht Braunschweig. Here are all the key facts you need to know.
2016/17 season: Wolfsburg slipped into the relegation places after a late 2-1 defeat against fellow strugglers Hamburg, and picked up just four points from their last five games - which included a 6-0 drubbing by Bayern Munich. On the other hand Braunschweig go into the game in better form, with the only real blemish coming on matchday 33 following a 0-6 thrashing by Arminia Bielefeld. Before that Eintracht won three games in a and closed out the season with a 2-1 win over Karlsruher to secure third place in Bundesliga 2.
Head to head: Wolfsburg and Braunschweig have met eight times, with the scales currently tipped in favour of the second division side, who have won four times to Wolfsburg’s three with one draw. The most recent meetings came in 2013/14 in the Bundesliga when Braunschweig 2-0 with a 1-1. The pair also faced off in Bundesliga 2 in 1992/93, with both games going the way of Wolfsburg 4-1 at home before a 1-0 win on the road in Braunschweig. There have also been Regional League meetings between the two. In 1973/74 the Wolves were triumphant 2-0 before Braunschweig gained revenge 4-2 in the corresponding fixture. Braunschweig reached Bundesliga 2 after beating Wolfsburg in a play-off in 1988, gaining promotion after 4-2 and 2-1 wins.
Training camp vs. Routine: After defeat last weekend, Andreas Jonker took his side to the Dutch town of De Lutte to prepare for this play-off, with Joncker preferring the calm peace and quiet of the facilities used by Ajax to prepare for the new season for the past 20 years. “We had many options but what we wanted most of all was the peace and quiet, which is without doubt the best plan for us,” said the 54-year old. Braunschweig meanwhile stayed in familiar surroundings to prepare for the clash. “Our team morale is strong and there are enough quiet places in Braunschweig to plan and prepare in peace,” said Lieberknecht.
Top goal scorer: Germany international Mario Gomez scored 16 goals and ended up fifth in the goalscoring charts. Braunschweig bring two sharp shooters to the table with Christoffer Nyman scoring 11 times and Domi Kumbele finding the net 13 times this season.
Weak attack:Apart from Gomey Wolfsburg’s front line consistently failed to find the net in 2016/17. The side managed just 34 goals all season, a record only not bettered by Hamburg (33) and relegated Darmstadt (28).
Old friends: Braunschweig’s Onel Hernandez has a strong Wolfsburg connection. The 24-year-old played for the Wolfsburg reserves from Summer 2014 before switching to Braunschweig in July 2016. He will return to his old stomping ground tonight.
Regulars: Gomez has played more games than anyone else for Wolfsburg. The attacker has played 35 times this season, with Maximilian Arnold the next best figure turning out 34 times. Eintracht’s most featured player is goalkeeper Jasmin Fejzec who has played 35 times for his club this season (including cup games).
Squad: Three players were missing from Wolfsburg’s retreat to De Lutte. Sebastian Jung is out with a muscle tear while Riechedly Bazoer was diagnosed with a meniscus tear after an MRT scan on Monday. The midfielderm must now undergo surgery but should be fit for the start of training in July. Jakub Blaszczykoswki should be fit however. Eintrachts injury list is a little shorter, with only those already on the long term injury list unlikely to play a part. Marcel Correia and Phil Ofosu-Ayeh.
Quotes: “We obviously did not want this game but we will remain professional to ensure that we do not need to worry about relegation for next season,” said Wolfsburg sporting director Dr Tim Schuhmacher.
“We will give VfL the respect they deserve, and hopefully they will do the same for us. We know how good they are as a group and our players are aware of this already,” said Braunschweig captain Ken Reichel. “They may have finished 16th but they have so much quality. We are going to be focused on preparing in order to get the best possible result from both of the legs,” added Braunschweig coach Torsetn Lieberknecht, also highlighting that his team have “another chance to write history.”
