FC Köln vs. Wolfsburg preview: Can the hosts claim back-to-back home wins?

FC Köln will look to claim a second successive home victory when they welcome Wolfsburg to the RheinEnergieStadion for Friday’s Bundesliga contest.

FC Köln

Köln head into matchday 20 in 10th position after winning five, drawing five and losing nine of their 19 league games. Die Geißböcke have struggled for victories in recent times, having won just one of their previous 10 Bundesliga matches (D3, L6), with that solitary victory taking place in their most recent home outing against Mainz 05.

They were unable to back up that 2-1 success in last Sunday’s away outing against Freiburg. Max Rosenfelder’s opener ultimately proved meaningless in a 2-1 loss at the Europa-Park Stadion, extending their winless away run to six matches (D2, L4). 

Köln will be keen to get back to winning ways on Friday, but that will be easier said than done, considering they have not beaten Wolfsburg at home since running out 3-1 winners in January 2020. They may be hoping for a simpler outing than September’s reverse fixture, which saw them net twice in an eventual stoppage time that produced three goals in total in a dramatic 3-3 draw.

Team News

Lukas Kwasniok is expected to be without the services of Timo Hübers, Dominique Heintz, Luca Kilian and Jahmai Simpson-Pusey due to injury.

Predicted lineup: Schwäbe; Sebulonsen, Martel, Van den Berg; Castro-Montes, Krauß, Kamiński, Lund; Maina,  Marius Bülter, Ache

Wolfsburg

Like Köln, Wolfsburg have struggled for wins in recent games, with their last five league outings producing one win, one draw and three defeats. The most recent of those losses took place in last Saturday’s away meeting with Mainz despite taking a narrow lead into the break following Mohamed Amoura’s third-minute opener. Wolfsburg saw three points, and then a point slip away as they shipped three goals in the space of 15 second-half minutes at the Mewa Arena. 

Die Wölfe will be nervously looking over the shoulder in 12th position, with just four points separating them from the bottom three ahead of Friday’s away trip. While they have won just one of their last five away league games, Wolfsburg can take confidence from the fact that they have emerged victorious on each of their previous three visits to the RheinEnergieStadion, including a 2-1 success in their most recent away meeting with Köln in August 2023. 

Team News

The visitors are likely to be without the services of Rogério, Cleiton, Jenson Seelt and Bence Dárdai, Joakim Mæhle and Jonas Wind. 

Predicted lineup: Grabara; Fischer, Jenz, Koulierakis, Gerhardt; Arnold, Vini Souza; Wimmer, Eriksen, Amoura; Pejčinović