2. Bundesliga Saturday Konferenz preview | OneFootball

1. FC Nürnberg vs. SV Elversberg

Nürnberg enjoyed a far more productive end to the year under Miroslav Klose, finishing the Hinrunde in eighth place on 22 points. After an early-season scare, they managed to put significant daylight between themselves and the automatic relegation places.

They rounded off 2025 with an impressive 2-1 home victory over promotion-chasing Hannover, with goals from Rafael Lubach and Mohamed Ali Zoma sealing all three points and providing genuine optimism heading into the business end of the campaign. There have been no new arrivals so far, though Klose has confirmed the club are searching for attacking and midfield reinforcements following Pape Demba Diop’s return to parent club Strasbourg and the loan departure of Semir Telalovic.

Vincent Wagner’s Elversberg continue to impress in the head coach’s first season at the helm. They sit second in the table, just three points behind leaders Schalke, having won three of their final five matches of 2025 while drawing the other two.

Elversberg currently boast the league’s most potent attack, scoring 31 goals in their opening 17 fixtures. However, January brought a significant blow as league top scorer Younes Ebnoutalib departed for Bundesliga side Frankfurt after an outstanding 12-goal return. Elversberg moved quickly to replace him, breaking their transfer record to sign 21-year-old David Mokwa from Hoffenheim.

Elversberg have won three of the last five meetings between the two sides, including a 1-0 victory on the opening day of the season courtesy of Maximilian Rohr’s stoppage-time winner.

Team news: 

Nürnberg: Henri Koudossou and Eryk Grzywacz are unavailable. Regional league top scorer Piet Scobel is expected to make his debut up front. 

Elversberg: Luca Pfeiffer and Luis Seifert remain sidelined. 

Predicted lineups: 

Nürnberg (4-3-3): Reichert (GK) - Drexler, Gruber, Lochoshvili, Yilmaz - Markhiev, Becker, Lubach - Justvan, Scobel, Zoma 

Elversberg (4-2-3-1): Kristof (GK) - Gyamerah, Pinckert, Rohr, Günther - Schmahl, Poreba - Petkov, Conté, Zimmerschied - Mokwa 

Dynamo Dresden vs. Greuther Fürth

Dynamo Dresden begin 2026 firmly in trouble. With just three wins from their opening 17 matches, they sit rock bottom of the table on 13 points. Their return to the Zweite Liga is already threatening to become a disastrous one as teams around them begin to pull away.

Plagued by issues across the pitch, including the league’s second-worst defensive record, Dresden have acted swiftly in the January window. Four loan signings have arrived in an attempt to spark a survival push, with Jonas Sterner joining from Hannover, Thomas Keller from Heidenheim, Jason Ceka from Elversberg and Robert Wagner from Freiburg. Their task begins with a crucial clash against Fürth, who sit just one place above them.

Fürth, much like their hosts, also find themselves under serious pressure at the halfway point of the season. A campaign riddled with inconsistency led to the dismissal of Thomas Kleine, and while Heiko Vogel has overseen improved performances, results have remained elusive. The Kleeblatt currently sit 17th on 15 points.

While supporters may have hoped for more activity, Fürth have added two new faces so far, signing Finnish midfielder Arifi Doni on a free transfer and Aiman Dardari on loan from Augsburg. At the same time, speculation continues to surround the future of top scorer Noel Futkeu. Any January departure would be a significant blow to their hopes of avoiding relegation.

Fürth won the reverse fixture 3-2 at the Sportpark Ronhof on the opening day of the season, the first meeting between the sides since 2020. This will also be the first time the two head coaches face each other, adding an extra layer of intrigue.

Team news: 

Dynamo Dresden: Nils Fröling, Jakob Zickler, and Jonas Oehmichen will miss Saturday's match due to illness. Jan-Hendrik Marx and Lennart Grill are also sidelined. 

Greuther Fürth: Brynjar Ingi Bjarnason, David Abrangao, Noah König, Marco John and Sacha Bansé are unavailable. Felix Klaus and Julian Green are both doubtful. 

Predicted lineups: 

Dynamo Dresden (4-3-3): Schreiber (GK) - Faber, Keller, Pauli, Rossipal - Amoako, Herrmann, Wagner - Ceka, Vermeij, Hauptmann 

Greuther Fürth (3-4-2-1): Schlieck (GK) - Ziereis, Munz, Itter - Dehm, Dietz, Green, Keller - Hrgota, Srbeny - Futkeu 

Preußen Münster vs. Karlsruher SC

Münster have experienced a peculiar campaign so far, frequently producing strong performances and controlling matches, only to come away empty-handed. Their current position of 12th, just three points clear of the relegation play-off spot, feels harsh given the quality they have often shown.

They closed out the year with a credible 1-1 home draw against high-flying Elversberg, thanks to Etienne Amenyido’s dramatic 94th-minute equaliser. Head coach Alexander Ende appears satisfied with his current squad, with little noise surrounding potential incomings. Earlier this week, the club also announced the appointment of former Schalke player Christian Pander as president.

Karlsruher SC, by contrast, ended 2025 in dreadful form. Just one point from their final six fixtures saw them slide down to ninth place, now 11 points adrift of the promotion positions and uncomfortably closer to the relegation zone.

Recent reports of tension between head coach Christian Eichner and the club hierarchy appear to have been resolved, but Karlsruher face fresh problems. A defensive crisis has emerged following injuries to all three first-choice centre backs, with Marcel Beifus, Christoph Kobald and Nicolai Rapp all sidelined after picking up issues during the winter training camp.

KSC won the reverse fixture 3-2 thanks to a late Lilian Egloff strike and remain unbeaten against Münster since 2013. Münster, meanwhile, have never recorded an away win in Karlsruhe.

Team news: 

Preußen Münster: Malik Batmaz, Simon Scherder, Marvin Schulz and Antonio Tikvic remain unavailable. 

Karlsruher SC: Marcel Beifus is ruled out for the season, while Nicolai Rapp and Christoph Kobald are also sidelined. Louey Ben Farhat and Lilian Egloff are expected to return to the squad.

Predicted lineups: 

Preußen Münster (4-4-2 Diamond): Schenk (GK) - ter Horst, Jaeckel, Heuer, Kirkeskov - Benger, Bouchama, Hendrix, Sertdemir - Lokotsch, Batista MeierKarlsruher SC (4-2-2-2): Bernat (GK) - Jung, Franke, Scholl, Herold - Burnic, Müller - Pinto Pedrosa, Wanitzek - Ben Farhat, Schleusener