Head-to-Head
- SC Rot-Weiss Essen have won 2 of the last 3 head-to-head matches in 3.Liga (W2, D0, L1).
- FC Energie Cottbus have failed to win their last home match against Essen.
FC Energie Cottbus
Second place SC Rot-Weiss Essen (64pts from 33 games) travel to play third placed Energie Cottbus (60pts from 33 games) in this 3.Liga clash on Sunday where the momentum of the league and local bragging rights are on the line.
SC Rot-Weiss Essen
Essen have won all of their last 5 league games (W5), whereas Cottbus have been in inconsistent form (W2, D1, L2).
Key Players
- Cottbus
- Claus-Dieter Wollitz is arguably the most versatile coach in the 3.Liga and has made Cottbus a threat on set-pieces and in transition from the get-go.
- His side have scored 2.12 goals per game and conceded 1.24 goals per-game at home in the 3.Liga 2025/2026 campaign, which suggests they’ll be the more attacking side on the day.
- Erik Engelhardt has been Cottbus’ talisman this season, notching 19 goals in 33 league games, while Marek Janssen leads the frontline with 11 goals in 26 3.Liga games.
- Cottbus will look to stretch the game wide, overload the flanks and dominate the physical battles, especially in the dangerous areas of the pitch.
- Essen
- Uwe Koschinat has been in charge of SC Rot-Weiss Essen since December 2024 and has engineered a fantastic surge in form for the club.
- In contrast to Wollitz’s more cavalier approach, Koschinat has made Essen a more defensive unit that will sit deep, press calculatedly and strike with pace on turnovers - often punishing opponents for lazy play.
Betting Insights
- Essen have scored 2.00 and conceded 1.94 per-game on the road in the 3.Liga 2025/2026, suggesting that they’ll be a threat to Cottbus here, but also that they may have defensive frailties to be exploited.
- However, their superb form makes them hard to ignore in the game betting, with odds of 2.6 available.
- Backing over 2.5 total goals at 1.5 and both teams to score (Yes) at 1.4 could also be the way to go here, as both sides have the attacking talent to cause problems and both have been sloppy at times.
