Bayer Leverkusen enter the weekend sixth in Bundesliga after their Hamburg postponement
Hoffenheim have won five straight Bundesliga home matches, scoring at least three goals in each
Andrej Kramaric and Patrik Schick headline the key battle, with Hoffenheim marginal favourites
Bayer Leverkusen boss Kasper Hjulmand said his team are approaching their next Bundesliga clash with Hoffenheim with "fire and energy" after their midweek postponement.
Leverkusen were due to play Hamburg at Volksparkstadion on Tuesday, but the game was postponed shortly before kick-off due to concerns over weather conditions.
And with them not being in action, it offered the chance for this weekend's opponents to leapfrog them into fifth place, having both played 16 matches.
Just seven points separate Leverkusen in sixth and second-placed Borussia Dortmund, with runaway leaders Bayern Munich already 18 points clear of Hjulmand's side.
The Werkself's first league game of 2026 saw them thumped 4-1 by Stuttgart and Hjulmand revealed his players are champing at the bit to get their first win of the new year.
"We have no problems with a situation like this. It's still a busy week, so we're very familiar with it," Hjulmand told reporters.
"We're only looking ahead positively and the postponed game has given us all the more fire, energy and anticipation. Hoffenheim are a great opponent, without a doubt.
"They have developed very well and proved that time and again from game to game. That's also a clear sign of good coaching work."
But Hjulmand acknowledged the difficulties that his team would face against Hoffenheim, despite their only being a point and a place separating them in the table.
Hoffenheim have made PreZero Arena into a fortress of late. They have won their last five Bundesliga home matches, after losing five in a row before that.
It's their longest consecutive home winning run since 2021 (also five), and this is the first time they have scored at least three goals in five consecutive top-flight home matches.
"Similar to the game against Stuttgart, we can expect a lot of one-v-one moments, a lot of duels, high pressing – especially in the centre," Hjulmand warned.
"This will result in little rhythm in the game, but lots of spaces to run into."
Special attention may also be placed on Bundesliga stalwart Andrej Kramaric, who scored a hat-trick in Hoffenheim's recent big win against Gladbach.
"I know him very well. We also played with Denmark against Croatia back then," Hjulmand said. "He's a great player.
"It's not just him. Above all, it's the way they play together as a team. We have trained well. Results come with the process."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Hoffenheim – Andrej Kramaric
At the age of 34 years and 209 days on the last matchday, Kramaric became the third-oldest player to score a Bundesliga hat-trick this millennium, after Claudio Pizarro (37 years, 151 days) and Martin Max (35 years, nine days).
He now has 132 Bundesliga goals – just one shy of Giovane Elber in third place among all-time foreign top scorers in Bundesliga history, but behind Robert Lewandowski (312) and Pizarro (197).
Bayer Leverkusen – Patrik Schick
Schick has been involved in more goals against Hoffenheim than any other opponent in the Bundesliga (nine – six goals, three assists).
In his last league match, he scored his 70th Bundesliga goal for Leverkusen, surpassing Dimitar Berbatov as the Werkself's all-time foreign top scorer in the top flight.
MATCH PREDICTION: HOFFENHEIM WIN
Despite being favoured by the Opta supercomputer simulations, Hoffenheim have suffered more Bundesliga home defeats against Leverkusen than against any other side (11).
But Christian Ilzer's side are enjoying their second-best top-flight season with 30 points after 16 games. They only had more at this stage in their debut campaign in 2008-09 (34).
Hoffenheim have also only lost one of their last ten Bundesliga matches (W7 D2 L1), with only Bundesliga leaders Bayern (29) picking up more points than them (23) since MD7.
Leverkusen, meanwhile, have lost three of their last five Bundesliga matches (W2 L3), as many defeats as in their previous 20 top-flight games combined.
Their last match against Stuttgart was the second time this season they have lost by three or more goals in the Bundesliga (1-4 vs Stuttgart, 0-3 vs Bayern), something that did not happen to them once in their previous two seasons.
And expect plenty of action in the final third between these two sides. Hoffenheim and Leverkusen have both scored 34 goals each in the Bundesliga this season. Only Bayern (66) and Eintracht Frankfurt (35) have netted more.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Hoffenheim – 41.2%
Draw – 24.1%
Bayer Leverkusen – 34.7%
