Hoffenheim vs Lyon prediction 22.10.2026 | Europa League

Hoffenheim return to SNP Arena after claiming a much-needed 2:1 victory against Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga on Sunday.

Goals from Bambase Conte and Alexander Prass secured the points for Christian Ilzer's side.

Sunday's victory ended a four-game losing run for the Bundesliga outfit. Hoffenheim had suffered successive defeats against OFI Crete, Paderborn, Hamburg and Besiktas before their vital away win. 

Ilzer's men remain pointless in the Europa League after losing their opening two league-phase fixtures. A 2:0 defeat at OFI was followed by a painful 3:2 home reversal against Besiktas.

Over a longer period, TSG lost six of their last eight games with an average of exactly four goals per game scored in those fixtures.

Defensive issues remain a serious concern for the hosts. Hoffenheim conceded in each of their last seven matches, with three goals or more conceded in five of their eight previous fixtures.

Head coach Ilzer has two expected absentees on Thursday. Patrick Wimmer and Albian Hajdari both ruled out for the home side.

Andrej Kramaric, Wouter Burger and Ozan Kabak are among those in contention to earn recalls after dropping out of the first XI at Monchengladbach.

Lyon make the trip to Germany after securing a hard-fought 2:1 victory against Nice in Ligue 1 last Sunday.

Paulo Fonseca's side fell behind after just 18 minutes before first-half goals from Pavel Sulc and Tanner Tessmann completed an excellent turnaround win.

Les Gones held on to a well-deserved victory after Keito Nakamura received a red card in the second half. 

Lyon have now won four of their last five competitive fixtures, with their only defeat coming in a 2:1 reversal at Lens earlier this month.

The visitors have made a perfect start in the Europa League, collecting six points from their opening two matches. Lyon secured a 2:1 victory at Anderlecht before beating Crystal Palace 3:2 last Thursday.

Corentin Tolisso, Ernest Nuamah and Sulc were on target against the Eagles as Fonseca's men maintained their impressive European form.

Clean sheets have been somewhat elusive, though. Lyon leaked at least one goal in seven of their last nine fixtures. Four of their last five games finished with BTTS and over 2.5 goals scored, and a similar outcome seems likely in Germany. 

Fonseca has several injury issues to deal with this week. Lois Openda, Mohamed Ouedraogo and Nicolas Tagliafico are expected to remain unavailable, while Moussa Niakhate is also considered doubtful.

Nakamura is available despite his red card against Nice while Dominik Greif, Corentin Tolisso and Ernest Nuamah are tipped to return to the first XI after being rested on Sunday.