By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
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VfB Stuttgart came as close as anyone to finally beating Bayer 04 Leverkusen last time out, and will be looking to make amends against FC Bayern München.
Denied in stoppage time by Xabi Alonso’s unbeaten champions on Matchday 31, Sebastian Hoeneß’s side still showed their incredible progress from last season’s relegation scrap, and their coach will have a point to prove when he welcomes the club where he made his big coaching break with the reserves.
Victory would ensure a return to the UEFA Champions League for the first time in 14 years and cut the gap to Bayern in second down to two points, with a potential runners-up spot their best finish since Die Schwaben’s 2007 Bundesliga title.
That honour has already gone to Leverkusen this season, but the treble-chasing Werkself are still looking to complete an unprecedented invincible campaign and have the tough task of a trip to the Deutsche Bank Park.
Awaiting them will be Eintracht Frankfurt who are eager to secure a European berth and end the season on a high. Dino Toppmöller’s side have missed out on the top five but need to keep winning with a chasing pack nipping at their heels for UEFA Europa League qualification.
Ahead of them, RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund have already secured top-five finishes this season, which looks set to mean Champions League football for both due to the competition’s new European Performance Spots. However, BVB can’t take anything for granted just yet.
Edin Terzić;s men will still be aiming for fourth, even with a damaging 4-1 defeat to Leipzig last time out. Next up on Matchday 32 is the visit of Europe-chasing Augsburg, while Die Roten Bullen will look to create an eight-point cushion when they kick off the weekend’s action with a Friday night trip to TSG Hoffenheim.
Both Hoffenheim and Augsburg are looking to return to Europe next season and are led in a tightly-packed mid-table group by SC Freiburg, who are seeking to end Christian Streich’s reign with continental qualification once more as they visit relegation-threatened.
FC Köln. Köln managed to avoid defeat against 1. FSV Mainz 05 last time out in dramatic scenes, but still left themselves perilously close to relegation and could well join SV Darmstadt 98 in Bundesliga 2 if things go against them this weekend.
Mainz themselves will aim to continue their great escape against high-flying Bundesliga newbies 1. FC Heidenheim 1846, and they will have a keen eye on Sunday’s first match where the two teams above them, 1. FC Union Berlin and VfL Bochum 1848, face-off in a huge six-pointer at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei.
Just ahead of those competitors are Borussia Mönchengladbach who are on the verge between a relegation battle and potential European football, and they could jump up the table during a trip to SV Werder Bremen.
Between them are already-relegated Darmstadt’s opponents VfL Wolfsburg who are targeting survival with a third win on the bounce, and like the teams around them, perhaps even more so as a fascinating battle for both European competition and Bundesliga survival continues.