Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-3 Nuremberg

HIROSHI Kiyotake scored one and set up two others as Nuremberg continued their fine start to the season by winning in Mönchengladbach for the first time since 2005. Dieter Hecking’s side deserved their win, as Gladbach put in a hit and miss performance, despite at one point clawing the score back to 2-2. Although Nuremberg looked accomplished tactically and showed good spirit, the visitors were indebted to summer signing Kiyotake for his technical brilliance and goalkeeper Raphael Schäfer – who pulled off one of the saves of the season – for their 3-2 win, which lifts them up to joint second in the table. Next weekend, Nuremberg host 1. Bundesliga’s other surprise quick-out-of-the-block side, Eintracht Frankfurt, while Gladbach will look to pick themselves up as they visit Bayer Leverkusen for a Rhine derby clash.

Match preview here.

Starting formations

Borussia Mönchengladbach (4-2-3-1, from right to left): Marc-André ter Stegen; Tony Jantschke, Martin Stranzl, Álvaro Domínguez, Filip Daems; Håvard Nordtveit, Granit Xhaka; Patrick Herrmann, Tolga Ciğerci, Juan Arango; Luuk de Jong

Nuremberg (4-2-3-1, from right to left): Schäfer; Timmy Chandler, Per Nilsson, Timm Klose, Javier Pinola; Hanno Balitsch, Timmy Simons; Róbert Mak, Kiyotake, Alexander Esswein; Tomáš Pekhart

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Borussia Mönchengladbach-Nuremberg preview

TWO teams who underwent vastly contrasting summer transfer campaigns go head to head in the third round of the 2012/13 1. Bundesliga season this weekend. Whereas Borussia Mönchengladbach lost three of their best players, Nuremberg had a relatively quiet summer, keeping the squad pretty much intact. Both sides have made decent starts to the latest league season, with Gladbach beating Hoffenheim and drawing away at local rivals Fortuna Düsseldorf, and Nuremberg winning away at Hamburg before holding reigning champions Borussia Dortmund to a draw at home last weekend (a game in which Dieter Hecking’s side had more than enough chances to win).

An international break has seen the German top-flight campaign have a two-week break since then, but you imagine both Hecking and Gladbach coach Lucien Favre will have appreciated the time this has given them to work with their players on the training ground; particularly the latter, whose side had played two Champions League games, a DFB-Pokal tie and two 1. Bundesliga matches in the space of 14 days.

Nuremberg-Hertha BSC preview

The Bundesliga is back after a month-long winter break, with new coaches and fresh signings joining the familiar faces to kick off the 18th round of fixtures. One of the Saturday afternoon ties sees Hertha Berlin travel to Nuremberg, with new coach Michael Skibbe taking charge of the visitors for the first time in a league match. Nobody associated with either of these sides will be able to sleep soundly in their beds until more points are on the board, with Nuremberg sitting in 15th spot having accumulated just 18 points, and the capital city outfit a mere four places and two points ahead of them.

Schalke-Nuremberg preview

Slumping to second-bottom place in the Bundesliga could be the fate that awaits Nuremberg this weekend, as the Bavarian outfit travel to high-flying Schalke. Dieter Hecking’s side, sat in 15th place, are on a dire run of form at the moment, and if they lose in a round of fixtures where both Hamburg and Freiburg are victorious, Nuremberg will join state neighbours Augsburg at the bottom. Schalke, on the other hand, could end matchday 13 in second spot, as they currently sit one point behind runners-up elect Borussia Dortmund. On paper, Nuremberg – whose fans have a very good relationship with Schalke’s – shouldn’t present too much of a problem for the 2010/11 Champions League semi-finalists: Hecking’s side have scored a league-worst four goals on the road. In comparison, Schalke – who are also topping their group in the Europa League – are the third sharpest side in front of goal so far this season, and come into this game having lost just one of their last ten matches (a surprise home reverse to Kaiserslautern on October 15).