Derby County return to Pride Park Stadium for the first time since April this weekend to take on UEFA Champions League bound TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.
Gary Rowett’s side face the Bundesliga outfit in what will be their final pre-season fixture ahead of the 2017/18 Sky Bet Championship season, kick-off: 3pm.
Up to this point, the Rams have played six games – recording four wins, a draw and a defeat in that period.
Ahead of what will almost definitely be Derby’s toughest pre-season test yet, dcfc.co.uk has taken a deeper look at Hoffenheim and what Rowett’s men can expect on Saturday…
A Moment In History…
TSG 1899 Hoffenheim boast one of football’s most remarkable stories in recent history.
Sure, they were founded back in 1899, but Hoffenheim have only become a well-recognised club over the last two decades.
Their journey has been a rollercoaster ride that continues to go up and up and up and is a story of a village football club that has transcended from the depths of amateur football to the UEFA Champions League.
It’s a journey that has been assisted, largely, by one of the club’s former youth players – Dietmar Hopp.
Returning as a financial backer, Hopp is the co-founder of software firm SAP and this acted as the spark of one of football's greatest rises.
Hoffenheim quickly rose through the divisions, starting from the fifth tier, and after climbing into the third, another process of major investment began.
By the 2007/08 season, they were embarking on their first season in professional football and Ralf Rangnick was in charge.
Two years later, Die Kraichgauer were in the top flight. Now they are in the Champions League and you would expect that they are consistent force in German football for years to come.
What Happened Last Season…
The 2016/17 campaign was the most successful season to date in Hoffenheim’s history.
Their fourth-place finish in the Bundesliga – in which they only finished behind Bayern Munch, RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund – meant they achieved Champions League football for the first time ever.
At one point in the season, they were only unbeaten side across all the top-flight leagues in Europe and they didn’t suffer a league defeat until the end of January – the first of only four losses over the course of the campaign.
The Stadium…
Hoffenheim’s Wirsol Rhein-Neckar-Arena is one of the newest stadiums in Germany having opened in January 2009.
With a capacity of 30,150, the club’s new ground replaced the tiny 6,350 Dietmar-Hopp-Stadion, which they had to leave in order to continue their trajectory up the German leagues.
Following their promotion to the Bundesliga, the German Football League (DFL) found that Dietmar-Hopp failed to meet the requirements of the league – forcing Hoffenheim to temporarily play in the Carl-Benz-Stadion in Mannhei, until they could resolve their stadium situation.
Who’s The Boss…
Julian Nagelsmann, at the age of just 28, became the youngest manager in Bundesliga history when he took over Hoffenheim in February 2016 on a three-year contract.
Since then, he has guided the club away from relegation and into the UEFA Champions League for the first time in the club’s history off the back of that fourth-place finish.
Nagelsmann had a playing career at youth level for Augsburg and 1860 Munich but had to retire at just 19-years-old due to injury.
In 2007, he took over the Hoffenheim Under-17 team and has worked his way up through the club’s age groups – leading the Under-19s to the Bundesliga title in the process – to become senior manager.
Nagelsmann is now one of the game’s most sought after managers in world football, but recently committed his future to the club after signing a new contract that will keep him at Wirsol Rhein-Neckar-Arena until 2021.
Who To Look Out For…
Andrej Kramarić may have endured a difficult time while at Leicester City during their Premier League title winning season in 2015/16, but he has gone on to really find his feet in the Bundesliga.
The 26-year-old joined Hoffenheim ahead of the last campaign and played a crucial role as they went on to achieve their highest ever finish in the top flight in Germany.
He scored 18 goals in all competitions, laying on several assists in the process too.
In midfield, Kerem Demirbay is a central midfielder who signed for Hoffenheim in the summer of 2016 and scored six goals in 28 appearances.
Demirbay had a youth career at Borussia Dortmund and Schalke as well as playing for Turkey up to Under-21 level. He has recently broken into the German national team and has made two appearances, scoring one goal.
Did You Know…
Julian Nagelsmann is Europe’s youngest top-flight boss at age 30.