Munich's lions come to Hoffenheim

SV Elversberg, who TSG defeated on Wednesday (4-3), are currently top of the 3. Liga table with an eight-point cushion. Behind them, a four-way battle has developed for the second direct promotion spot, and TSV 1860 Munich are right in the thick of it. Michael Köllner's side currently sit in sixth place, three points behind second-placed 1. FC Saarbrücken and one point behind their rivals from Wiesbaden, Ingolstadt and SC Freiburg II, who are not eligible for promotion. The Munich club even led the table until Matchday 10, but just seven points from the past seven matches have seen the Lions leapfrogged by their promotion rivals.

Two players from the Munich squad know their way around the Dietmar Hopp Stadium. Defender Semi Belkhaia made 22 appearances for Hoffenheim's U19s and was part of TSG's academy from 2014 to 2017 before moving to 1860 via VfR Garching. Meris Skenderovic was a Hoffenheim player for even longer - from 2008 to 2021 - and the centre-forward even made one substitute appearance for the first team in a 1-1 draw against Ludogorets Razgrad in the Europa League in December 2017.

The match against the Munich side, which will consist of two 60-minute halves, is TSG's second friendly fixture in preparation for the second half of the season. Next Tuesday, TSG will face second-tier outfit SpVgg Greuther Fürth in a match behind closed doors. After that, André Breitenreiter's team will take a short break over Christmas before training resumes on 2 January.

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