Two teams at opposite ends of the Bundesliga table face off at Merck-Stadion am Bollenfalltor as basement club SV Darmstadt 98 play host to Bayern Munich on Saturday afternoon.
The Bavarians, who thumped the Lilies 8-0 in the reverse fixture in October, travel to Hesse this weekend on the back of hammering Mainz 05 by an 8-1 scoreline in their most recent fixture.
Match preview
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A week after their humbling 6-0 home defeat to Augsburg which sparked outrage among the club's supporters, Darmstadt boss Torsten Lieberknecht hoped that seven changes made to his starting lineup would trigger a response from his side in last Saturday's trip to RB Leipzig.
However, the Lilies made the worst possible start at the Red Bull Arena as Thomas Isherwood put the ball into his own net inside the first three minutes, before Christoph Baumgartner doubled Leipzig's advantage five minutes after the break to condemn the visitors to their 16th league defeat of the season.
Darmstadt's club-record winless run has been extended to 18 games and they remain rooted to the foot of the table, 12 points adrift of safety. Lieberknecht's side face an uphill battle to avoid an immediate demotion to the second tier, as the previous six teams that have collected just 13 points after 25 matches have all been relegated.
All hope is not lost for the Lilies, though, as they are only four points behind FC Koln in the relegation playoff position (16th) and they are still to face the Billy Goats, 15th-placed VfL Bochum and 17th-placed Mainz 05 within their final nine fixtures of the campaign.
Darmstadt head into Saturday's daunting contest having lost each of their last seven encounters with Bayern since drawing 1-1 in their first-ever meeting back in 1978, but they can take some confidence from the fact that their Bavarian counterparts have failed to win any of their last four away matches.
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Following a run of just one victory in four Bundesliga matches, Bayern Munich seem to have put their mini slump behind them as they returned to winning ways in emphatic fashion with a statement 8-1 triumph over Mainz last weekend.
It was a historic afternoon for hat-trick hero Harry Kane, who became the first-ever player to score four trebles in a debut Bundesliga season, while his 30 top-flight strikes have equalled Uwe Seeler's record for the most goals in a debut Bundesliga campaign.
Leon Goretzka was at the double, while Thomas Muller, Jamal Musiala and Serge Gnabry were also on the scoresheet as the Bavarian giants claimed their 18th Bundesliga win of the season, although hopes of retaining the title are still hanging by a thread as they sit 10 points adrift of unbeaten leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
With Leverkusen in action against Freiburg on Sunday, Bayern have the chance to reduce the gap at the summit to seven points, and a fixture against a struggling Darmatadt outfit will be welcomed by Thomas Tuchel's side as they look to enter the international break on a high before returning with a Der Klassiker showdown against Borussia Dortmund.
Not since November/December 2010 have Bayern endured a four-game winless away run in all competitions, but they will fancy their chances of claiming maximum points against Darmstadt, as against no other team do they boast a better points-per-game ratio (2.8) among sides they have faced at least five times in the division.
Team News
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Darmstadt's Marvin Mehlem (broken leg), Matthias Bader (hamstring), Fraser Hornby, Clemens Riedel, Fabian Nurnberger (all ankle) and Braydon Manu (fitness) all remain in the treatment room, while Fabian Holland (concussion) will be assessed ahead of kickoff.
Matej Maglica missed the defeat at Leipzig after sustaining a minor injury in training, but he should be fit to return this weekend and could join Christoph Klarer and either Christoph Zimmermann or Klaus Gjasula in a back three.
Emir Karic could be recalled to link arms with Bartol Franjic and Tobias Kempe in centre-midfield, while Oscar Vilhelmsson and Fabio Torsiello will hope to fend off competition from Sebastian Polter and Luca Pfeiffer for another start in attack.
As for Bayern, Kingsley Coman, Bouna Sarr (both knee) and Tarek Buchmann (thigh) all remain sidelined, while Noussair Mazraoui will have a hamstring issue assessed ahead of kickoff.
Alphonso Davies will also be assessed after having a couple of his front teeth knocked out of place in the win over Mainz; Raphael Guerreiro could be called upon to start at left-back if needed.
Aleksandar Pavlovic is available to return after serving a one-match ban and is set to compete with Konrad Laimer for a start in midfield, while an attacking quartet of Leroy Sane, Muller, Musiala and Kane is set to remain intact.
SV Darmstadt 98 possible starting lineup:
Schuhen; Skarke, Klarer, Zimmermann, Maglica, Karic; Justvan, Kempe, Franjic, Holtmann; Polter
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Neuer; Kimmich, De Ligt, Dier, Guerreiro; Pavlovic, Goretzka; Sane, Muller, Musiala; Kane
We say: SV Darmstadt 98 0-4 Bayern Munich
Neither side can afford to drop points if they wish to boost their hopes of achieving their respective targets this season, but it will come as no surprise to many that Bayern enter Saturday's contest as firm favourites to come out on top.
The Bundesliga's strongest attack, Bayern with 73 goals scored, should have few problems breaching the division's leakiest backline, Darmstadt with 60 goals conceded, en route to comfortably claiming all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
