VFL WOLFSBURGAfter a brutal 1-8 defeat to FC Bayern München to start off the 2026 calendar year, VfL Wolfsburg (5-3-9, 11th) needed a win in a midweek clash with relegation zone side FC St. Pauli to ...
VFL WOLFSBURG
After a brutal 1-8 defeat to FC Bayern München to start off the 2026 calendar year, VfL Wolfsburg (5-3-9, 11th) needed a win in a midweek clash with relegation zone side FC St. Pauli to avoid moving down to the bottom three. Thanks to a Christian Eriksen penalty - the first Bundesliga goal in his career - and a late Dženan Pejčinović header - his fifth in the last three matches - Daniel Bauer’s Wölfe managed to take all three points in a 2-1 result and move up to eleventh by the time that all of the other matches were completed.
Wolfsburg are currently five points away from the top half of the table, and eleven from European competition - and with their next two opponents being in or around the relegation zone, these being Heidenheim and 1. FSV Mainz 05, this is their opportunity to pick up six valuable points and hope that any of the teams above them, especially the teams ninth or above, struggle to pick up points themselves.
The last five head-to-head records against Heidenheim and Mainz are decent for Wolfsburg, as they are 3-1-1 against Heidenheim and 1-3-1 against Mainz, dating back to the start of the 2023/24 season. In three of those meetings against Heidenheim, Wolfsburg used a 4-2-3-1 formation and went 2-1-0; however, none of those were with Daniel Bauer as head coach.
Regarding facing Heidenheim for the first time, Bauer said: “There is this factor that they are, generally speaking, having a difficult run - but that makes them all the more dangerous, because Heidenheim have been representative of team spirit for years. We know the situation, we know the David - Goliath scenario, and it will be a difficult task because we have to be very patient”.
“It will not be a walk in the park - nobody should make mistakes, both within our squad and theirs. It will be another very difficult task, they are strong on set pieces and counterattacks, so we must be vigilant. We must try to avoid those situations and when it comes to our standards, we must have a compact, strong discipline once again,” he added.
Regarding the fans, 22 031 of which were present for the St. Pauli match, and what is expected of the team for the Heidenheim match, Bauer said: “It would be nice if the arena were always sold out - but that is also down to us. I believe we simply have a duty here. We have discussed 2025 often enough - overall it just was not a great year, especially in terms of home matches. If we are not successful and fewer spectators come, I can understand that, and we as a team have a duty to deliver good performances and good results at home”.
“That can be like a hard-fought victory, such as the one we had on Wednesday against St. Pauli, you can bring fans to the venue for an epic last-minute win like that. That was often the other way around in 2025. We want to play exciting, attacking, passionate football, we want to attract more spectators again, and I am completely convinced that we are on the right track together”, he added.
Bauer finished answering the question by saying: “I am appreciative of everyone who might say tomorrow, ‘Hey, we won on Wednesday, we will go to the arena tomorrow’, because I hope the guys will give us our second home win in a row”.
Team News:
The list of injuries remains quite long for VfL Wolfsburg, but the most recent issue is that of Dženan Pejčinović, who will be absent from this match due to an apparent foot injury that he seemed to have played through on Wednesday.
Bauer was asked about the injury situation and said: “Unfortunately, in terms of personnel, we have a setback tomorrow that will definitely hurt. Dženan will not be available tomorrow; there was a slight problem with his foot during the [FC St. Pauli] match … we still need to run a few more tests to see, and hope that he will not be out for a longer period, but the fact is that he will not be available for us tomorrow afternoon”. Mohamed Amoura, who returned from international duty with Algeria at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, will likely take Pejčinović’s place as the lone striker.
Swedish defensive midfielder Mattias Svanberg will also be absent, due to an illness following the St. Pauli match. “Furthermore, Mattias will be missing - unfortunately, a virus knocked him flat,” Bauer said. “Accordingly, the two of them [Pejčinović / Svanberg] will not be there”.
Bauer also gave a more positive update on Danish winger Jesper Lindstrøm, who is on loan from SSC Napoli with the option of a permanent move following the end of the 2025/26 season.
“I can already announce that one player that will definitely be returning to the squad is Lindstrøm; he has completed all training units since the beginning of the year,” the 43-year-old coach from Andernach, Rheinland-Pfalz said. “He has built a good foundation, he is bursting with energy and excitement for the match - he is shooting the ball with both feet again, and we are very happy that he will be back in the squad tomorrow”.
As for the other injuries, Dutch centre-back Jenson Seelt (flu) is still under the weather, with his return now being marked as unknown.Brazilian left-back Rogério (muscle), Danish left-back / left midfielder Joakim Mæhle (shoulder), and Danish striker Jonas Wind (hip) are still expected to return to the training ground in late January. Hungarian defensive midfielder / central midfielder Bence Dárdai (cruciate ligament) will remain absent until late July, due to an injury he suffered in November.
Other news worth noting is that Pharrell Hensel signed his first professional contract earlier this week, and will likely be in a substitute role for the foreseeable future. Hensel said about the agreement: “I am incredibly proud and grateful to have the opportunity to sign my first professional contract with VfL. A dream is coming true for me; VfL is my footballing home and I cannot imagine a better place to continue developing my skillset. This contract is a major motivation for me to continue working hard and giving everything for the club”.
German goalkeeper Marius Müller has returned to the squad following a concussion that left him off the bench since mid-December; he has not played a match since the DFB-Pokal elimination in late October, 0-1 to KSV Holstein. Danish right winger / right midfielder Andreas Skov Olsen (muscle) was on the list of injuries, but has moved to Rangers FC on loan with a €10 million option to buy at the end of the season. He will be recovering in Glasgow and is set to make his debut in the Scottish Premiership at the end of the month.
Projected Lineup (4-2-3-1): Grabara - Zehnter, Koulierakis, Jenz, Kumbedi - Gerhardt, Arnold - Wimmer, Majer, Eriksen - Amoura.
1. FC HEIDENHEIM 1846
The last time that VfL Wolfsburg and 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 (3-3-11, 18th) met each other was in the first week of the 2025/26 season. Heidenheim had finished sixteenth in the Bundesliga table in the prior season, and were placed in the relegation zone by journalists and supercomputers, with 1. FC Köln being the other side projected to be relegated in some cases.
Head coach Frank Schmidt said in August, ahead of that matchup, that “anyone could come to that conclusion”, and that “we know that we made some mistakes, and that we have learned from them”. Unfortunately, some of the same issues that plagued Heidenheim in 2024/25 have hit them once again this year - starting the season 1-2-8, and now 3-3-11 with the worst goal differential in the league (-22). They go into this match with an 0-1-3 record in the last four matches, statistically controlling two of them.
Regarding the mood and the current situation surrounding the club in the last four matches and the season overall, Schmidt said in Heidenheim’s press conference on Thursday: “The mood is adjusted to the result, so there cannot be a good mood because we only picked up one point. Results will certainly have a consequence if we simply go back to business as usual and just say, ‘well, it is what it is’”.
He added: “Of course, the Bayern match [0-4 defeat] has to be excluded a bit, but from the last four matches - basically against three teams that are in our range and are also considered competitors in the fight to stay in the Bundesliga - we only managed one point. That is not enough. We are disappointed, we are not running through the halls with joy, but we are dealing with the issues and analysing them honestly”.
“There are too many defeats, too few points, and we are disappointed with the first half of the season. However, on the plus side, things cannot get worse now, they can only get better. I find it difficult to always be somewhat satisfied with the fact that the differences between us and the other teams are not great - but if we continue like this, those gaps will widen, and we urgently need to initiate a reversal of this trend because we cannot be satisfied with the situation,” the 52-year-old Schmidt finished.
Team News:
German defender Adam Kölle (illness) is set to return in a few days, but will be absent from the squad in this weekend’s match. Georgian striker Budu Zivzivadze (knee) will be absent from the Heidenheim squad for at least another week, due to a knee injury suffered in late November. Kosovar left-back / left midfielder Leart Paqarada (cruciate ligament) has not played since the seventh minute of an 0-2 defeat to Borussia Dortmund back in September, and will not be fit to return for the rest of the season.
German left-back Hennes Behrens (lack of fitness) remains sidelined from the squad, and the timetable for his return is unknown. Behrens is on loan from the TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, but has not played a match since September for the Hoffenheim reserves in 3. Liga.
German attacking midfielder / striker Christian Conteh (medial collateral ligament), who just signed a contract this week, is still being evaluated with an unknown return, following an injury suffered in 2. Bundesliga for Eintracht Braunschweig against Schalke 04 on 20 December.
Projected Lineup (4-3-3): Ramaj - Föhrenbach, Siersleben, Mainka, Traoré - Dorsch, Niehues, Beck - Ibrahimović, Pieringer, S. Conteh.
Category: General Sports
