Wolfsburg vs Paderborn Predictions

• No team has come up via the play-offs since 2018/19
• Wolfsburg won 3-1 at St Pauli on the final day
• Paderborn have won just one of their last five games

History against Paderborn

The first leg of the Bundesliga promotion and relegation play-off takes place on Thursday as Wolfsburg take on Paderborn.

The hosts are looking to avoid dropping out of the top flight and recent history suggests they have an excellent chance of retaining their Bundesliga status.

No team has managed to win promotion from Bundesliga 2 via the play-offs since Union Berlin went up in 2019, and Wolfsburg managed to hit form at the right time to avoid automatic relegation.

Die Wolfe beat drop rivals St Pauli 3-1 in the final round of fixtures to secure 16th place and a chance to stay up, while condemning their hosts to the drop.

Wolfsburg lost just one of their final five league games, winning two, and have the quality to overcome a Paderborn side who lost two of their final four games.

This first leg could be a fairly cagey affair, however, and a narrow 1-0 win for the hosts is the correct score pick. Paderborn only conceded 18 goals on their travels in Bundesliga 2 and they can compete against top tier sides, taking Bayer Leverkusen to extra time in the DfB Pokal earlier in the season, so they should be able to make things uncomfortable for their hosts.

Wolfsburg scored just 17 goals in as many home Bundesliga games and may settle for a 1-0 win in the opening fixture, as they were far better on their travels with just 10 of their 29 points coming in home games.