SC Paderborn 07 vs Hannover 96 preview - Breitenreiter relishes tough run

Paderborn coach Andre Breitenreiter says his side are about to discover just what being in the Bundesliga is all about after a successful start to the season.

The East Westphalians, the 53rd club to grace the Bundesliga stage, have started with a win and two draws, earning them a share of fifth place in the table.

They host third-placed Hannover on Saturday before travelling to Bayern Munich, hosting Borussia Monchengladbach and then heading to Bayer Leverkusen over the next fortnight.

"We've got four games against sides from the top five in the current standings and we can learn a lot from these games for the rest of our season," Breitenreiter said.

"All we have in common with Hannover is that we have both gone the last five months unbeaten in league matches."

Most of those for Paderborn, however, came in the second division, where their last defeat dates back to April 4.

Given that run, Hannover coach Tayfun Korkut says he has not been surprised by Paderborn's strong start to life in the top flight.

"Paderborn's rise has been constant, and they've achieved it with modest means," he said.

"We know what we're up against. Paderborn are very strong defensively and they have a very stable, intact team who are also very strong at home.

"But we will be playing to win and to extend our own streak of form."

Miiko Albornoz and Christian Pander are both rivals for a place at left full-back, although neither of them have been given an entirely clean bill of health.

The former has "only just hopped back on and needs to be led back into training carefully," according to Korkut, while the latter has a heel problem.

Korkut added: "We'll just have to see how things develop with both of them leading up to Saturday."