2. Bundesliga preview: Greuther Fürth vs. Holstein Kiel

Greuther Fürth will be looking to respond to last weekend’s disappointing defeat when they welcome Holstein Kiel in an important meeting between two sides separated by just one point in the 2. Bundesliga table.

Heiko Vogel’s team currently occupy 12th place with nine points from their opening nine matches, while Holstein Kiel sit 13th with eight points. Both sides have endured inconsistent starts to the campaign, although the visitors arrive with considerably more confidence following consecutive victories in the league and DFB-Pokal.

Fürth will be particularly keen to take advantage of home support, with Sunday’s encounter presenting an opportunity to move further away from the relegation places. Meanwhile, Tim Walter’s Kiel side will be targeting their first away league victory of the season as they look to build on an encouraging week.

Greuther Fürth

Greuther Fürth head into Sunday’s encounter looking to put an emphatic 3-0 defeat against VfL Osnabrück behind them.

The result represented a significant setback for Vogel’s side, who struggled with individual errors and defensive organisation throughout the contest.

Fürth have collected just nine points from their opening nine league matches, recording two victories, three draws and four defeats.

Their attacking output has nevertheless offered some encouragement, with captain Felix Klaus proving particularly influential. The experienced winger has scored seven of the team’s 12 league goals and provided two assists, making him one of the most important players in Vogel’s squad.

However, defensive inconsistency remains a concern, with the Kleeblatt having conceded 16 goals already this season.

Vogel admitted that his team had experienced a collective collapse against Osnabrück, describing the performance as a ‘system failure’ and accepting responsibility for the disappointing result.

Speaking ahead of Sunday’s encounter, the Fürth coach insisted that supporters would see a different performance from his players.

“I believe we will see a completely different side to my team at the weekend,” Vogel explained.

The coach also confirmed that he had given every player an opportunity to demonstrate their qualities during the training week, rather than singling individuals out following the defeat.

Vogel will be particularly wary of the threat posed by Kiel, although he expects his team to remain committed to their own playing philosophy.

Sunday’s encounter also presents Fürth with an opportunity to achieve a significant milestone, as victory would represent the club’s 500th win in the 2. Bundesliga.

Holstein Kiel

Holstein Kiel travel to Bavaria with renewed confidence after recording two consecutive victories across league and cup competitions.

Walter’s team secured their first league victory of the season last weekend, producing an impressive 3-0 win over Dynamo Dresden.

The result was an important breakthrough for a side that had previously struggled to turn promising performances into victories, having collected just eight points from their opening nine matches.

Kiel subsequently produced another impressive performance on Wednesday evening, eliminating Bundesliga opponents TSG Hoffenheim from the DFB-Pokal following a 4-3 penalty shootout victory.

After 120 minutes of football ended in a 1-1 draw, young goalkeeper Lio Rothenhagen became the hero by saving crucial penalties to send the Storks into the last 16.

The victories have provided a significant boost to confidence within Walter’s squad, although the former Hamburg coach will be conscious that his team have yet to win away from home in the league this season.

Kiel have collected just one point from their four away fixtures, making Sunday’s encounter an important opportunity to improve that record.

Walter has nevertheless insisted that his players should not approach the additional workload from Wednesday’s cup encounter negatively.

“For us, it is more energising, but it does not take any work away from us,” Walter explained.

Head-to-head record

The two sides have developed a competitive rivalry in recent years, having regularly crossed paths in the 2. Bundesliga.

Holstein Kiel have enjoyed some success in this fixture, including a 2-0 victory on their previous visit to Fürth in August 2025.

That encounter saw the visitors take all three points, with Jonas Therkelsen and John Tolkin finding the net.

Fürth will therefore be hoping to reverse that result on home soil, particularly given the importance of collecting points against a direct competitor in the lower half of the table.

With only one point separating the teams, Sunday’s meeting could prove significant in determining which side begins to build momentum heading into the next round of fixtures.

Team news

Greuther Fürth:

Vogel has relatively few injury concerns heading into Sunday’s encounter, with Maxim Dal the only confirmed absentee.

The defender is recovering from shoulder surgery and will not be available for selection.

The positive fitness situation gives Vogel plenty of options as he looks to make changes following last weekend’s disappointing performance.

Holstein Kiel:

Kiel will definitely remain without several longer-term absentees, including Kasper Davidsen’s defensive teammate Taisei Abe, who is recovering from back surgery.

Hamza Muqaj is also unavailable with a knee injury, while Lasse Rosenboom and Frederik Roslyng continue their respective rehabilitation programmes following surgery.

Sebastian Schonlau and Steven Skrzybski also remain unavailable. 

Predicted lineups

Greuther Fürth (4-2-3-1): Hellstern; Dehm, Heuer, Blank, Itter; Bansé, Will; Klaus, Appelkamp, Pohlmann; Jordan

Holstein Kiel (4-2-2-2): Weiner; Sekine, Madsen, Zec, Parduzi; Meffert, Davidsen; Kapralik, de Regt; Kvilitaia, Harres.