Desperate to get off the mark in the Bundesliga, Borussia Monchengladbach will travel to face an inconsistent Stuttgart at MHPArena on Friday.

Die Roten are looking for their first win in three games, while Die Fohlen are hoping to avoid a seventh straight defeat.

Match preview

Sebastian Hoeness's Stuttgart finished fourth in the league last term, qualifying for the Champions League, but they have made a surprisingly poor start to this campaign despite ambitions to build on that success.

Die Roten lost four of their first six top-flight outings, including a frustrating 1-0 away defeat Hamburger SV last Saturday.

That latest disappointment has left Hoeness's side 13th in the Bundesliga, where their tally of six points has them just one above the relegation zone.

The only bright spot for Stuttgart has been their commendable beginning to the Champions League's league-phase, which has seen the club go unbeaten, winning twice and drawing once - 1-1 with Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.

If Die Roten can translate their continental run into domestic success on Friday, then they could change the complexion of their campaign, considering they sit just four points shy of the top five.

With that goal in mind, fans of the hosts will take heart from the fact the Swabians have only tasted defeat once across all competitions at MHPArena this term, winning twice and scoring eight goals in the process.

Meanwhile, Gladbach have endured a dire start to 2026-27, and Alexander Blessin will have his work cut out to turn things around.

Die Fohlen sacked Eugen Polanski after a 5-0 thrashing by Freiburg on September 12, and replaced him with Blessin ahead of the international break.

Gladbach prepared well for the return to Bundesliga action with two friendlies, beating Sportfreunde Siegen 3-0 and drawing 1-1 with St Pauli, the new boss' former club.

However, the 53-year-old kicked off his tenure with a 2-1 defeat to FC Koln on October 11, before repeating the scoreline and result against Hoffenheim last Sunday.

Those losses mean that Blessin's side are stranded at the bottom of the table, where they remain without a single point to their name.

Gladbach are five points behind 15th-placed Schalke 04, and are at serious risk of being cut adrift from the division's other relegation contenders this week.

Looking for any reason to hope for improvement, the travelling support will cling to the fact that the visitors have scored four goals in their last three league matches - netting at least once in each - a stark contrast to the three-game drought they began the campaign with.

Stuttgart Bundesliga form:

Stuttgart form (all competitions):

Borussia Monchengladbach Bundesliga form:

Borussia Monchengladbach form (all competitions):

Team News

Stuttgart are without left winger Justin Diehl due to a quadriceps injury, while there are doubts about the fitness of versatile attacker Tiago Tomas, who has been recovering from a muscle problem.

If the latter is unavailable, then Jamie Leweling, Deniz Undav and Chris Fuhrich should start behind striker Ermedin Demirovic on Friday.

In defence, centre-back Dan-Axel Zagadou's participation is in question due to a hamstring injury, and right-back Josha Vagnoman is a doubt after being forced off against Atletico, so expect to see Finn Jeltsch and Jeff Chabot operate at the heart of the hosts' backline, flanked by Lorenz Assignon and Max Mittelstadt.

As for Gladbach, they could have an extensive list of absentees to contend with, especially in attack, where winger Franck Honorat (muscle), right winger Nicolas Kuhn (muscle) and striker Isac Lidberg (thigh) are doubts, while Tim Kleindienst (thigh) and attacking midfielder Fritz Fleck (muscle) are sidelined.

In their absence, Hugo Bolin and Shuto Machino look set to lead the line, supported from out wide by Joe Scally and Wael Mohya.

Midfielder Enzo Leopold is in the early stages of recovering from an anterior cruciate ligament injury, and it is unclear whether Jens Castrop will play a part despite joining training on Tuesday, but Florian Neuhaus and Zento Uno are ready to start in the centre of the park.

Elsewhere, Jan Leszczynski is out with a knee injury, and fellow centre-half Ko Itakura is a doubt with a muscle issue, so Kevin Diks and Fabio Chiarodia are likely to form a partnership in front of goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas.

Stuttgart possible starting lineup:

Seimen; Assignon, Jeltsch, Chabot, Mittelstadt; Karazor, Stiller; Leweling, Undav, Fuhrich; Demirovic

Borussia Monchengladbach possible starting lineup:

Nicolas; Sander, Diks, Chiarodia, Ullrich; Scally, Neuhaus, Uno, Mohya; Bolin, Machino

We say: Stuttgart 3-1 Borussia Monchengladbach

Stuttgart may have struggled domestically this season, but they will be optimistic up against the Bundesliga's bottom club.

Gladbach could find themselves on the scoresheet for the fourth consecutive league game, though it would be a surprise to see the visitors avoid defeat.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.