2026/2027 season

Bundesliga

Team page
Bundesliga · Team page
TSG Hoffenheim
Head coach: Christian Ilzer · 4-4-2
Rank
17th
Pts
3
P
5
Form
🟠 Poor

The essentials at a glance

The summary of this page: estimated level of play, form trend and qualitative verdict. For the details, head to the other tabs.

Editors' ratings
5/10
Attack
3/10
Defence
2/10
Form
4/10
Confidence / mood
Current risk:High

17th with 3 pts from 5 matches: 1 win, 0 draws, 4 defeats.

9 goals scored, 13 conceded.

TSG Hoffenheim plays in Mönchengladbach.

Sportschau · 18 Oct 2026 · machine-translated

The TSG Hoffenheim II leads only 2:1 against the SC Verl. With a win, the Kraichgauers can advance to 5th place in the table.

Sportschau · 18 Oct 2026 · machine-translated

It is an absolute cellar duel: The table last Borussia Mönchengladbach receives the likewise crisis-ridden Hoffenheimer.

Sportschau · 18 Oct 2026 · machine-translated

The TSG Hoffenheim continues to slip into the sporting crisis. In the Europa League, the Kraichgauers conceded the next defeat with 2:3 against Besiktas Istanbul. Captain Oliver Baumann then spoke plainly.

Sportschau · 16 Oct 2026 · machine-translated

How the team has played recently

Match-by-match results, record and rhythm of the current season.

Latest matches
Lvs Hamburger SV (H) · 2-3
Lvs SC Paderborn 07 (A) · 1-3
Wvs VfB Stuttgart (H) · 2-1
Lvs Borussia Dortmund (H) · 2-3
Lvs 1. FC Köln (A) · 2-3
WLLLL
9 scored / 13 conceded over 5 matches played
Rest: 8 days since the last match · 1 match played in the last 15 days
Home form
1W - 0D - 2L
Away form
0W - 0D - 2L
Statistics

Computed from this season's scores, every time the page is shown.

Goals scored per match
1.8
Goals conceded per match
2.6
At home
6 scored · 7 conceded in 3 matches
Away
3 scored · 6 conceded in 2 matches
Over 2.5 goals
5 of 5
Both teams score
5 of 5
Clean sheets
0 of 5
Failed to score
0 of 5
Cumulative points vs league average

Not enough matchdays recorded yet for this curve — history builds up with every standings refresh.

How TSG Hoffenheim play

System, playing identity, and what sets the team apart at both ends of the pitch.

Playing identity
Preferred system
4-4-2
Philosophy
Ilzer, given a long-term extension in May 2026, stands for “a clear idea of play, high intensity and a modern leadership culture” in the words of sporting director Andreas Schicker; the club openly embraces a model of recruiting high-potential young players who are then sold on at the highest level.
Attacking strengths
65 goals scored in 2025-26 (5th-best attack in the league, goal difference +13); 4-0 in the 1st round of the Cup at Erzgebirge Aue (Patrick Wimmer brace, goals from Wouter Burger and Max Moerstedt) and 2 goals scored on matchday 1 at Cologne (Adam Daghim 27', Ozan Kabak 67'), but a penalty missed by Moerstedt (57') proved costly.
Defensive solidity
52 goals conceded in 2025-26, an average total for a team that finished 5th; clean sheet in the Cup on 22/08, then three goals conceded in 40 minutes at Cologne on 29/08, including a brace from substitute Thijs Dallinga (72', 82').
Pressing
Not verified: no pressing figures (PPDA, height of ball recovery) could be cross-checked for 2026-27. The “high intensity” is claimed by the club at the time of Ilzer's extension, but this is a communication element, not a measurement.
Transitions
Not verified. The match reports consulted describe a TSG leading twice at Cologne before collapsing late in the match, with no usable transition analysis.
StrengthSquad markedly strengthened (five eight-figure signings according to Comunio) after a 61-point season, the second-best total in the club's history; total continuity on the bench and in the sporting leadership; return to European competition; depth regained with Adam Hložek fit again.
WeaknessStart without Andrej Kramarić or Fisnik Asllani, and without Alexander Prass; simultaneous integration of a large number of very young signings; unfavourable efficiency at Cologne (twice ahead, penalty missed, defeat); departure of the best creator Bazoumana Touré, not replaced like for like.

The mood around the club, and who is missing

Internal climate, relationship with the supporters, and known absences before the next match.

Mood
Squad confidence
TSG left Cologne with plenty of regrets having twice led, and the club itself called the defeat “needless” in its statement. Christian Ilzer had in fact publicly warned against the overconfidence born of last season's 5th place. He chose to protect Max Moerstedt after his missed penalty, stressing the 20-year-old's courage rather than the failure. Tim Lemperle's return, Bernardo's and Andrej Kramarić's reappearance do, however, restore options for Dortmund's visit.
Coach / players / board relationship
The relationship between Christian Ilzer and Andreas Schicker remains the project's foundation: the two men have worked together for seven seasons, from Sturm Graz to Hoffenheim, and accept hard conversations behind closed doors while showing mutual trust. The sporting directors continue to apply a model of development and resale, as Alessandro Vogt's loan to Heidenheim shows, justified by Paul Pajduch in the name of playing time. Andreas Schicker does specify that he would act “in the club's interest” if it became necessary, a reminder that the relationship is not unconditional. No public disagreement emerged this week.
Mood with the supporters
According to Andreas Schicker, the supporter base has strengthened markedly in recent seasons, with stable attendance, and he rejects the idea of a “small” club — an executive's view, not independent data. Hosting Borussia Dortmund, on Saturday 5 September at 15:30, is traditionally one of the best-attended fixtures of the season at the PreZero Arena. No protest, banner or tension with the board has been reported by the sources consulted. The mood therefore remains neutral to positive despite the opening defeat.
Pressure on the head coach
Pressure on Christian Ilzer is very low. He signed a long-term extension on 29 May 2026 after taking the club to 61 points, the second-best total in its history, and to European qualification. His handling of people, illustrated by his public support for Max Moerstedt, is being highlighted rather than questioned. No source reports any debate about his position after the defeat at Cologne.
Club objectives
No numerical objective was stated publicly by Christian Ilzer or Andreas Schicker at the end of August. The club claims consolidation in the top half and a successful first European campaign, explicitly linking the football to a model of development and then resale. The short-term objective is to correct the defensive nerves of the last half-hour at Cologne and to rediscover the efficiency shown in the cup. Hosting Dortmund is a first test of level.
Recent internal tensions
No collective tension is reported. The best-documented individual case remains that of Fisnik Asllani, whose collapsed transfer to RB Leipzig was emotionally difficult and made him miss the pre-season camp, before knee inflammation further delayed his reintegration. Christian Ilzer is handling that case cautiously, accepting that the player is behind on workload compared with a group that has put in seven intensive weeks. Alessandro Vogt's loan to Heidenheim, a month after his arrival, happened with no visible friction.
Absences
DoubtfulFisnik Asllani — Inflammation of the knee's fat pad now resolved, but a gradual build-up after missing the cup and matchday 1; return undated.
BackAndrej Kramarić — Operated on his groin in early July, back in action by coming on in the 87th minute at Cologne; still short of match sharpness for lack of pre-season games.
BackBernardo — Slight Achilles tendon soreness had cost him the cup round; he completed the full week of training and is available again.
BackTim Lemperle — Served his one-match ban on matchday 1 for the sending-off received against Mönchengladbach in May 2026; selectable again against Dortmund.

Before kick-off

What to know before the next match: statistical form, qualitative analysis, and a computed estimate of the 1/X/2 probabilities.

Next match

Borussia Mönchengladbach — TSG Hoffenheim

AwaySunday 18 October at 17:30Matchday 6
It's today. Kick-off time confirmed by the league. Paris time · football-data.org fixtures.

Prediction, odds and form of both teams →

What the press says
Prediction
EstimateBorussia Mönchengladbach — TSG Hoffenheim
41 %
1 · Borussia Mönchengladbach
19 %
X · draw
40 %
2 · TSG Hoffenheim
In-house calculation, from this page's standings data alone: 5 matches played by Borussia Mönchengladbach, 5 matches by TSG Hoffenheim. Confidence: medium
The formula, in plain words — with this match's figures
  1. League average. 193 goals scored over 104 team-matches played (18 teams taken into account), i.e. μ = 1.86 goal scored per team per match. This is the reference point: everything that follows is expressed relative to it.
  2. Attacking and defensive strengths. Goals scored (or conceded) per match, divided by μ. 1.00 = exactly average; in defence, above 1.00 means “concedes more than average”.
    TeamGoalsRawKept
    Borussia Mönchengladbach — attack7 in 5 matches0.750.89
    Borussia Mönchengladbach — defence18 in 5 matches1.941.43
    TSG Hoffenheim — attack9 in 5 matches0.970.99
    TSG Hoffenheim — defence13 in 5 matches1.401.18
    The “Kept” column is the result of shrinkage towards the mean: weight = P / (P + 6), i.e. 0.45 for Borussia Mönchengladbach and 0.45 for TSG Hoffenheim. The rest of the weight goes to the league average. This is what stops a lone 5-0 from producing an attack at 3.3 times the average — and hence a 95% probability.
  3. Home advantage (γ). Measured on the league itself: 2.23 goal scored on average by the host against 1.48 by the visitor, over the 44 fixtures present in each team's last 5 matches. Raw ratio 1.51; shrunk towards 1 (weight 0.42, on the log of the ratio) then capped at 1.25 → γ = 1.19. Shrinkage goes towards 1, i.e. no advantage at all: while the sample is small, the model does not assert a home advantage it cannot measure.
  4. Venue correction, specific to each team. Drawn from the home/away split: points per match at the venue concerned are compared to points per match over all fixtures, with stronger shrinkage (weight = P / (P + 8)) and a bound of ±12%.
    Borussia Mönchengladbach at home: 0.00 pts/match versus 0.00 overall over 2 matches → ×1.000
    TSG Hoffenheim away: 0.00 pts/match versus 0.60 overall over 2 matches → ×0.880
  5. Expected goals. One side's attack is set against the other's defence. γ applies to the host only: applying it the other way round too would count the home advantage twice.
    λBorussia Mönchengladbach = 1.86 × 0.89 × 1.18 × 1.19 × 1.000 = 2.32
    λTSG Hoffenheim = 1.86 × 0.99 × 1.43 × 0.880 = 2.30
  6. Poisson grid. Probability of every exact score from 0-0 to 8-8, assuming the two goal totals are independent, then adding up the cells: home win 40.8%, draw 19.2%, away win 40.1% — displayed rounded to whole numbers so that they add up to exactly 100. Most likely exact score in the grid: 2-2 (only 7.0%, which says enough about how unpredictable an exact score is).
Limits of this model — they are not anecdotal.
  • It only knows goals and a venue. Neither absences, suspensions, line-ups, fatigue, stakes, weather nor club context enter the calculation — while the other tabs of this page show that they matter.
  • The assumption that the two goal totals are independent is false in reality: it slightly underestimates tight scores, hence the draw.
  • γ is measured over a rolling window (each team's last 5 matches), not over the whole season.
  • The shrinkage constants (6, 60, 8) and the bounds are choices, not measurements. They were tuned to be cautious early in the season; they were not calibrated on a results history, as none is available here.
  • No after-the-fact evaluation has been made: at this stage, nobody knows whether this model is better or worse calibrated than another.
What other sources say
No external source has been collected for this match. That is the normal state: readings are taken by hand, and an empty box is better than an unverified figure.
This block shows probability estimates, not predictions, and carries no advisory value. The in-house estimate is the result of a formula applied to a small sample; the figures from external sources are reproduced as they were collected, without their method having been verified.

The full squad

The professional squad by position, captain marked with an armband.

Goalkeepers
  • Oliver BaumannC
  • Luca Philipp
  • Lukas Petersson
Defenders
  • Ozan Kabak
  • Albian Hajdari
  • Robin Hranáč
  • Bernardo
  • Vladimír Coufal
  • Kōki Machida
  • Alexander Prass
  • Mats Rots
  • Arthur Chaves
  • Sean Dulic
  • Valentin Gendrey
  • Natnael Abraha
  • Tristan Spranger
Midfielders
  • Wouter Burger
  • Leon Avdullahu
  • Dennis Geiger
  • Nathan De Cat
  • Bambasé Conté
  • Cajetan Lenz
  • Andrej Kramarić
  • Luis Engelns
Forwards
  • Adam Hložek
  • Adam Daghim
  • Patrick Wimmer
  • Tim Lemperle
  • Max Moerstedt
  • Fisnik Asllani
Squad last verified on 31 Aug 2026 — source: sport.de (Kader 2026/2027) for the list; captaincy and vice-captains (Burger, Kramarić) confirmed by neunzigplus.de (19/08/2026).

What has been said recently

Chronological feed of verified information about the club.

rss18 Oct 2026
From 1.30 pm live: TSG Hoffenheim II against SC Verl
Source: Sportschau
rss18 Oct 2026
Listen Live: Borussia Mönchengladbach against TSG Hoffenheim - Bundesliga
Source: Sportschau
rss18 Oct 2026
From 5.30 pm live - Gladbach welcomes Hoffenheim
Source: Sportschau
rss16 Oct 2026
Hoffenheim in the crisis: goalkeeper Baumann to Besiktas - "That pukes me"
Source: Sportschau
rss15 Oct 2026
Randal Kolo Muani savior of the Juventus, Jhon Duran enjoys against Celtic Glasgow, Besiktas wins in Hoffenheim
Source: L'Équipe
rss15 Oct 2026
Next bankruptcy - Hoffenheim is also subject to Besiktas
Source: Sportschau
Club3 Sep 2026
TSG host Borussia Dortmund on Saturday 5 September at 15:30 at the PreZero Arena for matchday 2. The expected eleven is set up in a 4-2-2-2 with Oliver Baumann in goal, a Coufal - Kabak - Hajdari - Hranáč defence, an Avdullahu - Burger double pivot and the Lemperle - Hložek pair up front, Tim Lemperle being available again having served his suspension.
Source: LigaInsider
Transfers1 Sep 2026
New signing Adam Daghim, who arrived from Salzburg, scored in his very first Bundesliga match in his new colours. The summer window also brought winger Patrick Wimmer, from Wolfsburg, and Mats Rots from Twente.
Source: Bundesliga.com
Head coach31 Aug 2026
Christian Ilzer publicly backed Max Moerstedt after his missed penalty at Cologne: “Max is a goalscorer, Max has already taken a lot of penalties and he practises them.” The head coach above all praised the 20-year-old's attitude: “What I like about him is that he takes responsibility, goes to the spot and says: I wear the number 9.” He presents that failure as a normal step in learning.
Source: LigaInsider
Transfers31 Aug 2026
Swiss forward Alessandro Vogt, 21, signed from FC St Gallen in summer 2026, is on loan at 1. FC Heidenheim until the end of the season. Paul Pajduch, sporting director for the professional department, justifies the deal: “For him, it is decisive to play regularly at the highest possible level.” Vogt scored 15 goals in the Super League last season, the third-highest total in the Swiss league.
Source: LigaInsider
Injury29 Aug 2026
Andrej Kramarić made his return to competition by coming on in the 87th minute at Cologne, replacing Adam Daghim. Operated on his groin in early July, the 35-year-old forward had been taking part in team training for two weeks but was completely short of sharpness, not having played a single pre-season match.
Source: LigaInsider
Result29 Aug 2026
Hoffenheim let a win slip at Cologne: 1-0 up through Adam Daghim (27) and then 2-1 through Ozan Kabak (67), the club conceded a brace from Thijs Dallinga (72 and 82) and lost 3-2. A penalty was also missed against Marvin Schwäbe.
Source: Fussballdaten
Injury28 Aug 2026
Fisnik Asllani missed both the cup round at Erzgebirge Aue and the trip to Cologne because of slight inflammation of the knee's fat pad. Christian Ilzer specified that the inflammation had cleared — “everything is fine” — but that caution was needed: “He will gradually be put under greater load.” His deficit compared with a group that has put in seven weeks of intensive pre-season makes an immediate return difficult.
Source: LigaInsider
Injury28 Aug 2026
Left-back Bernardo, 31, is available again after slight Achilles tendon soreness that had kept him out of the cup round against Erzgebirge Aue. Christian Ilzer confirmed that he had “been able to take part in all of the week's training”, without deciding on a start, new signing Mats Rots also being available in that position.
Source: LigaInsider
News last verified on 18 Oct 2026. Sources: sports press (L'Équipe, Le Parisien, Foot Mercato, regional press…) and official club websites — see the link on each item.
Editorial content (playing style, mood, absences, external prediction sources) last verified on 3 Sep 2026. The standings/form data above are refreshed automatically — as is the 1/X/2 estimate, recomputed on every view.