At the Rhein-Necker-Arena on Sunday afternoon, 1899 Hoffenheim will do battle with Hertha BSC in their last match of 2014. The start of the campaign has really been lacklustre, to say the least, for both sides.

For the visiting side, though, they find themselves in the 7th spot in the Bundesliga with the possibility of moving into a European spot depending on how other matches finish. This would be a huge accomplishment considering that they have dropped points on 10 separate occasions, including all three points five times. "I hope that we can put in a good performance and come away with something to show for it," said Hoffeinheim manager Markus Gisdol.

Hoffenheim could be without Eugen Polanski as he picked up a knock during midweek and Niklas Süle is still a ways from being ready to suit up again. Look for Brazilian forward Roberto Firmino to be involved early and often as the offense moves through him. He's a very creative attacking player who can be spotted in and around all areas of the 18 yard box and can be a threat to score from any of these positions.

Hertha BSC were expected to do a lot better than what they have lived up to so far this season as they currently sit near the bottom of the table in the 13th position. Last match was a bit of a heartbreaker from the home side as they were up 4-2 in the 90th minute of play, but two late goals from Frankfurt saw them drop two points.

They will look for revenge this time around and stay focused more on the defense side of the ball late in the match so that they have the possibility of winning all three points. If they are able to play compact defense all match long without switching off during the full 90 minutes expect them to be able to pick up at least a point to move them further up the table. 

Ivory Coast international striker Salomon Kalou was fined 5,000 Euros for his outburst after the match. Hertha could certainly benefit from him on the pitch, but the veteran should be more calm if he goes unused because he will get his chances to shine and when the time comes, Kalou better be ready to make the most out of his opportunities. Kraft, Ronny, Skjelbred and Niemeyer have all picked up knocks, according to Hertha, so it looks more and more likely that Kalou will in fact get some playing time tomorrow.