2. Bundesliga Saturday Konferenz: Previews, team news & predicted lineups | OneFootball

Karlsruher SC vs. Schalke 04

KSC continue to quietly impress under Christian Eichner. Despite sitting 7th on 18 points, they’ve only lost twice in 10 league outings and remain within striking distance of the top three - a position they’ll look to strengthen in Saturday’s key clash.

A midweek Pokal defeat to Borussia Mönchengladbach (3-1) halted their cup run, but KSC will hope to lean on their formidable home form, having won four of five matches at the BBBank Wildpark, where they’ve netted 10 of their 17 goals this season.

Schalke, meanwhile, are one of the league’s form sides. Riding a five-game winning streak, the Königsblauen sit top of the table with 24 points from 10 matches, quietly fuelling hopes of a swift Bundesliga return. They edged Darmstadt 1-0 last weekend in the league, but were humbled by the same opponent in midweek - a 4-0 Pokal defeat marking their heaviest loss of the campaign.

The backbone of Schalke’s rise has been their exceptional defence - the league’s best with just five goals conceded, only two of which have come away from home. Muslic’s side will again look to that resilience as they face a dangerous KSC attack.

The sides split their meetings last season, each claiming one victory. Notably, Schalke haven’t won in Karlsruhe since 2011, while Eichner has faced Schalke six times in his career - losing only once.

Team news: 

Karlsruher SC: Lilian Egloff suffered a muscle injury against Gladbach and faces several weeks out. Louey Ben Farhat and Sebastian Jung also remain unavailable.Schalke 04: Christopher Antwi-Adjei, Timo Becker, Christian Gomis, Emil Højlund, Tomas Kalas, and Bryan Lasme are sidelined.Predicted lineups: 

Karlsruher SC (3-3-2-2): Bernat (GK) - Kobald, Rapp, Beifus - Pinto Pedrosa, Burnic, Herold - Wanitzek, Förster - Schleusener, Simič 

Schalke 04 (3-4-2-1): Karius (GK) - Ayhan, Katić, Kuruçay - Gantenbein, Schallenberg, El-Faouzi, V. Becker - Bachmann, Karaman - Sylla 

Hertha BSC vs. Dynamo Dresden

Hertha have found their rhythm in recent weeks, winning three of their last four league games to climb to 8th place on 14 points. The capital club still face an eight-point gap to the promotion spots but appear to be finally building momentum.

Things continued to improve for Hertha in midweek, following Maurice Krattenmacher’s last-gasp winner against Düsseldorf. The in-form Elversberg then visited the capital in the DFB-Pokal, but were sent packing after a commanding 3-0 display - arguably Hertha’s best performance of the season so far. Stefan Leitl will hope that showing sets the benchmark as his side prepare for another must-win home fixture on Saturday.

For Dresden, it’s been a worrying start. They sit 16th with just seven points and remain the only team in the league with a single victory. Manager Thomas Stamm is under pressure to turn things around quickly - especially with both sides below them recently making managerial changes and improving.

Despite poor results, Dresden’s support remains remarkable. Between 20,000–25,000 of their fans are expected in Berlin, aiming to transform the Olympiastadion into a “home away from home” and inspire a much-needed result.

The clubs haven’t met since their 2019 DFB-Pokal thriller, which Hertha won on penalties after a 3-3 draw. Notably, Leitl has never lost in five managerial meetings with Dresden.

Team news: 

Hertha BSC: Leon Jensen, Deyo Zeefuik, Pascal Klemens, and Dawid Kownacki remain sidelined. Toni Leistner and Paul Seguin are expected to return after midweek rotation.

Dynamo Dresden: Julian Pauli, Sascha Risch, Tim Schreiber, and Jakob Zickler are injured. Stefan Kutschke remains suspended after his red card in Münster.Predicted lineups: 

Hertha BSC (4-2-3-1): Ernst (GK) - Gechter, Leistner, Dardai, Karbownik - Seguin, Eichhorn - Krattenmacher, Cuisance, Reese - Grønning 

Dynamo Dresden (4-1-4-1): Grill (GK) - Kammerknecht, Boeder, Bünning, Rossipal - Šapina - Faber, Hauptmann, Amoako, Fröling - Daferner 

1. FC Nürnberg vs. Eintracht Braunschweig

After losing their first five league matches and seeing Miroslav Klose’s future questioned, Nürnberg have shown signs of recovery, losing just once in their last five. They remain 15th, one spot above the relegation zone, but Saturday’s fixture offers a valuable chance to push further clear.

Goalscoring remains their biggest issue - just nine goals in ten games - with their striking contingent of Zoma, Grimaldi, Stepanov, Biron, and Telalovic combining for only two league goals so far. Klose will be demanding more from his forwards as he seeks consistency.

Braunschweig haven’t been much steadier. Sitting 12th, just one point better off, Heiner Backhaus’ side continue to struggle for rhythm, often following big wins with disappointing defeats. Last weekend’s 0-3 home loss to Hannover epitomised that inconsistency, coming just a week after a superb away win in Düsseldorf.

Encouragingly, three of their four victories have come on the road, something they’ll look to build on against a vulnerable Nürnberg outfit. However, history is against them - Nürnberg are unbeaten in their last five meetings (four wins, one draw), and Braunschweig haven’t won away here since 1979 - a curse Backhaus will be desperate to end.

Team news: 

1. FC Nürnberg: Tarek Buchmann, Danilo Soares, Henri Koudossou, Pape Demba Diop and Noah Maboulou are all unavailable. 

Eintracht Braunschweig: Lukas Frenkert and Fredrik Jäkel are injured, while Erencan Yardimci is suspended following his red card last week. 

Predicted lineups: 

1. FC Nürnberg (4-3-3): Reichert (GK) - Drexler, Gruber, Lochoshvili, Yilmaz - Markhiev, Becker, Lubach - Justvan, Zoma, Stepanov 

Eintracht Braunschweig (3-3-2-2): Hoffmann (GK) - Köhler, Ehlers, Breunig - Aydin, Flick, Di Michele Sanchez - Marie, Heußer - Tempelmann, Szabo