Bundesliga round 14

Bochum v Cologne
Mainz v Hamburg
Nurnberg v Freiburg
Hoffenheim v Dortmund
Hertha v Eintracht
Bremen v Wolfsburg
Monchengladbach v Schalke
Leverkusen v Stuttgart
Hannover v Bayern

It's all about Luca Toni this week. The lumbering Italian issued a completely futile "it's him or me" ultimatum last week that he's bound to come off worse from. That and comments to the papers about his souring relationship with Louis van Gaal led to a club suspension, a €25,000 fine and he's been dropped completely from the squad to face Hannover this weekend. The club say he'll be welcome back if he apologises, but these things normally only end one way, so it's ta-ta Toni come January. Besides, the club already have one lumbering carthorse of a striker in Mario Gomez. Beating Hannover will prove little about Bayern as a force. We all know what that club is going through at the moment, but a win over the traditional powerhouse of German football would be a massive fillip.

Game of the week sees Wolfsburg go to in-form Bremen who haven't lost since the opening day. Both sides are without strikers - Claudio Pizarro and Obafemi Martins have both played their last matches of the calendar year. Another Martins - Bremen's Moreno Martins - comes in after recovering from breaking his jaw to bolster the strikeforce, but it's Mesut Ozil who is attracting the attention. What a player. With him on the books, it's no wonder the club were so willing to cash in on Diego. Wolfsburg let a lead slip on the astroturf of the Luzhniki in midweek and looked poor. Zvejzdan Misimovic was anonymous and he's so important to them. They need a turnaround and soon.

Hoffenheim v Dortmund also looks a cracker. There's sure to be goals there, unlike Friday night's Bochum v Cologne match which has been eschewed by ESPN in the UK for Sparta v PSV from the Eredivisie. Wise move. Hamburg's stuttering challenge faces a stern test in Mainz, Hertha haven't had a better opportunity to win a game than this week at home to Eintracht, though they'll find some way of blowing it and the leaders Leverkusen have a gimme at home to Stuttgart. Gladbach have it all to do against Schalke who are beginning to hit their stride, but Nurnberg v Freiburg is definitely one for the purists only.