Bundesliga: Matchday Eight preview

Bayern vs. Bremen

Poor old Thiago. His latest injury setback, another ligament tear in his knee, has many Bayern fans wondering whether Thiago is in fact Spanish for 'sick note.' With the Spaniard out, Franck Ribery returns and is expected to feature, which will please the home fans but will be stomach-churning news for the green away fans. Werder are bottom of the table and deservedly so. That won't change after this weekend, but their manager might.

Mainz vs. Augsburg

Against a counterattacking Augsburg side, Mainz will probably revert to five at the back to soak up any attacks. The visitors are in yo-yo form at the moment (last four games: WLWL) and so perhaps a win should be expected from Markus Weinzierl's side this weekend. Mainz though, are still undefeated in the Bundesliga this season. This game has the classic Bundesliga "impossible-to-predict" headline written all over it.

Hannover vs. Gladbach

Hannover started the season full of promise, but have since wobbled (three defeats in the last four games). Head coach Tayfun Korkut will likely pick two strikers to start this game, Joselu and Jimmy Briand, to change their fortunes. Gladbach meanwhile are caught between drawing and cementing their position at the top of the table. Christoph Kramer missing through illness will be an issue for Lucien Favre's side this weekend. Kramer will take some replacing at the end of this season when his loan spell ends and he returns to Leverkusen, so Havard Nordtveit will need to step up. Fabian Johnson's expected return is a big plus though.

Freiburg vs. Wolfsburg

Quite frankly, Wolfsburg have to win this game. 11 points from seven games isn't that bad for a side trying to compete in Europe as well, but Wolfsburg have talked so long of wanting this situation that they've got to start walking through it better too. With Robin Knoche away for Germany's U21's maybe Timm Klose will get another start. Freiburg may be at home, but a draw would suit them. Coach Christian Streich just wants the points tally regularly ticking over.

Stuttgart vs. Leverkusen

If Robin Dutt is treading on thin ice at Werder Bremen, then Armin Veh is at the edge of the same lake at Stuttgart. A defeat to Bayern was hardly surprising, but defeats to Cologne and recently Hertha will have been disappointing. They must seize on the plus points so far this season, namely draws against Gladbach and Dortmund. As for Leverkusen, the break has done them good. They have no injury concerns aside from captain Simon Rolfes who is in doubt. It's time for them to shake off a growing pattern of drawing against sides they should be beating. They recently drew to Paderborn and Freiburg.

Cologne vs. Dortmund

"The start of the rest of the season." That's how Borussia Dortmund's coach Jürgen Klopp has described this game for his team. Shinji Kagawa, Oliver Kirch, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Marco Reus and Ilkay Gündogan (after 422 days of injury hell) all returned to team training this week. With his selection options broadened, it's safe to say Klopp will be back with a smile on Saturday. Now it's time to keep it that way and start winning. After asking his side to go for goal after a defensive start this season, Peter Stöger will want his Cologne team to return to that defensive dominance against Dortmund, so expect three holding midfielders.

Schalke vs. Berlin (Saturday late kick-off)

What will Di Matteo do? The coach who led Chelsea to the Champions League title in the most smash-and-grab fashion is now at the helm of Schalke after Jens Keller was unceremoniously cast aside. Di Matteo's first game will be analyzed to death, but it's the winning that will matter the most. Against Hertha Berlin, another Bundesliga side in yo-yo form (last 5 games: LDWLW), and at home, the Italian can realistically expect a three-point return on his Bundesliga debut.

Hamburg vs. Hoffenheim (Sunday)

Remarkably, Markus Gisdol's tighter ship has Hoffenheim sailing in second place in the Bundesliga, with fewer goals conceded than games played this season. But,"Magic Joe" has Hamburg in a spell of confidence after that win in Dortmund and with Hoffenheim's defence still without Ermin Bicakcic, and Rafael van der Vaart set to return for HSV, league positions will mean little on Sunday. Hoffenheim may have to put aside their defensive strength for their tried and tested "outscoring the opposition" tactic. All eyes will be on Dortmund, but this is the under-the-radar game of the weekend.

Paderborn vs. Frankfurt (Sunday)

Thomas Schaaf has got Frankfurt winning again, but with defensive regular Carlos Zambrano now out for a lengthy spell due to a ligament tear, their defense will get a test in this game. Because of this, and because it's his style of play, Paderborn's coach Andre Breitenreiterto will try to test Frankfurt's potential weakness at the back. With the home fans cheering on another Bundesliga game in loving disbelief, Paderborn still have time to enjoy things before worry has to set in. With Frankfurt's Haris Seferovic and Alex Meier in good form, that's probably a good thing too.