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Wolfsburg host Manchester United

Ross DunbarDecember 7, 2015

Wolfsburg can reach the knockout stages and eliminate Manchester United from the Champions League. Meanwhile, in-form Borussia Mönchengladbach face Manchester City with third-place up for grabs on Tuesday night.

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Fußball Bundesliga Jubel VfL Wolfsburg
Image: Getty Images/Bongarts/S. Franklin

Tuesday's showdown is do-or-die for both Wolfsburg and Manchester United. Boasting a one point advantage over the Red Devils, the Wolves need a at least a draw to progress to the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time.

Group B has been one of the tighest in the competition, with PSV Eindhoven and CSKA Moscow earning points throughout. Leading the group going into matchday 6, a point for the Wolves would be enough to qualify, while all three would guarantee top-spot, which is important when seedings are made for the next stage.

But preparations took a hit on Saturday as Borussia Dortmund ended their 29-game unbeaten home run. Cancelling out an opener from Marco Reus, Ricardo Rodriguez scored an injury-time penalty before Shinji Kagawa bagged the winner.

"It was really annoying," admitted head coach Dieter Hecking. "We have to shake this off quickly."

World Cup winner Bastian Schweinsteiger will return to Germany for the encounter as United look to win in Wolfsburg for the second time. On their previous visit in 2009, former England international Michael Owen scored a hattrick, while Bosnia international Edin Dzeko netted one for the Wolves.

Head coach Louis van Gaal's men are without Wayne Rooney, Morgan Schneiderlin, Ander Herrera, Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo, Antonio Valencia and Luke Shaw. The Red Devils were held at home to West Ham on Saturday, their third draw in succession. Wolfsburg, meanwhile, will be without Luiz Gustavo who missed the Dortmund defeat, while Julian Draxler and Dante are back from injury and suspension respectively.

Bundesliga 15. Spieltag Borussia Mönchengladbach FC Bayern München
Johnson wheels away having scored his third in two league gamesImage: Getty Images/Bongarts/L. Baron

The Final Curtain

Borussia Mönchengladbach can still secure a place in the round of 32 of the Europa League when they face Manchester City on Tuesday. The Foals have been buoyed by the 3-1 win over Bayern Munich on Saturday, the club's 10th match in the league without defeat since the appointment of Andre Schubert as coach.

Schubert's team has impressed in Europe, but the 4-2 win over Sevilla and draw against Juventus wasn't enough to keep the Bundesliga side in the race for second. If Gladbach win in Manchester, they will secure third, but a draw would require results to go their way when Sevilla face Juventus.

"We have our goal in our own hands. We have to push ourselves to the limit again," the captain, Granit Xhaka said.

"We are confident that we can survive in Europe," goalie Yann Sommer said.

The sounds from Manchester are like music to the ears of Schubert and his players. City lost their previous Premier League match at Stoke 2-0, having lost 4-1 at home to Liverpool two weeks back.

"My team is tired. We must always prepare with the same 13 players," Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini said.

Gladbach's long-standing record against English clubs is strong, having suffered just four defeats in half a century. Confidence is high among the Gladbach players and securing European football for the New Year wouldl be another milestone for Schubert.