Augsburg will travel to Borussia Monchengladbach on Saturday afternoon knowing that a victory would secure their position in the Bundesliga for the 2023-24 campaign.
The visitors are currently 14th in the table, only two points clear of 16th-placed Bochum, while Monchengladbach occupy 11th spot, and the hosts do not have anything substantial to play for in the final set of fixtures this season.
Match preview
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Monchengladbach finished fourth in the 2019-20 Bundesliga table, but they have been eighth and 10th in their last two campaigns, and an underwhelming 2022-23 has left them in 11th position.
The Foals are four points ahead of 12th-placed Werder Bremen, so they cannot finish any lower than their current spot, but 10th position is open, with the team sitting just two points behind FC Koln.
Daniel Farke's side will enter this match off the back of a 2-2 draw with Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday, with goals from Jonas Hofmann and Lars Stindl managing to secure a point for the visitors to BayArena.
Monchengladbach have been relatively strong at home this season, picking up 30 points from their 16 games in front of their own fans, and they will be welcoming an Augsburg outfit that have secured just three wins from their 16 games on their travels in 2022-23.
Die Borussen have faced Saturday's opponents on 25 previous occasions and only just shade the head-to-head record nine victories to eight, while Augsburg ran out 1-0 winners in the reverse match earlier this season.
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Augsburg have lost their last two Bundesliga matches against Bochum and Borussia Dortmund, which has left them in 14th position in the table on 34 points.
The Bavarian outfit are three points clear of 17th-placed Schalke 04 and two ahead of 16th-place Bochum, who are currently set to compete in the relegation playoffs.
Augsburg will enter this match knowing that they would secure survival with a victory over Monchengladbach, while a draw is also likely to be enough due to their vastly superior goal difference over Bochum.
The strugglers could also lose and be safe if Bochum fail to overcome Bayer Leverkusen on home soil, so they are in a strong position heading into their final game of the season.
Augsburg, who were last victorious in the league against Union Berlin on May 6, finished 14th in the Bundesliga last season, but they could potentially end the season in 12th with a win here depending on other results this weekend.
Team News
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Monchengladbach have a lengthy injury list, with Christoph Kramer, Manu Kone, Semir Telalovic, Jonas Omlin and Yvandro Borges Sanches all on the sidelines for the home side.
Ramy Bensebaini is available again following a suspension, though, and the 28-year-old should return for Farke's side on the final matchday of the campaign.
Marcus Thuram, who is out of contract at the end of June, has scored 16 goals during a strong campaign and will again lead the line with support from Hofmann, who has found the back of the net on 13 occasions in all competitions this term.
Augsburg, meanwhile, will be missing Felix Uduokhai through suspension due to the red card that he picked up in the defeat to Dortmund last time out.
Robert Gumny is back from a ban of his own, but the strugglers have a huge injury list, with Mergim Berisha, Mads Pedersen, Fredrik Jensen, Ruben Vargas, Iago, Reece Oxford, Rafael Gikiewicz, Andre Hahn, Tobias Strobl and Julian Baumgartlinger all on the sidelines.
The absence of leading goalscorer Berisha is a huge blow, but Ermedin Demirovic has come up with eight goals during a productive campaign, and the 25-year-old will again feature in the final third of the field.
Borussia Monchengladbach possible starting lineup:
Olschowsky; Itakura, Friedrich, Elvedi; Lainer, Weigl, Stindl, Bensebaini; Plea, Thuram, Hofmann
Augsburg possible starting lineup:
Koubek; Gumny, Gouweleeuw, Bauer, Veiga; Engels, Dorsch, Rexhbecaj; Yeboah, Beljo, Demirovic
We say: Borussia Monchengladbach 2-0 Augsburg
Augsburg are likely to be relying on results elsewhere when it comes to their Bundesliga status, as we are predicting Monchengladbach to win here. The visitors will be missing a whole host of first-team players, and we are finding it tough to back them to pick up a positive result on Saturday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Matt Law
