- Head-to-head: The stats and recent H2H record favour the hosts, but Essen's recent form and 4th place in the 3.Liga 2025-2026 table suggests they should be the more likely winners.
- Away form: Essen have won seven of their 18 away matches this season, losing five (W7, D6, L5), averaging 2.00 goals per game scored and 2.33 per game conceded.
A clash of styles between 4th and 18th placed sides
SSV Ulm boss Pavel Dotchev took over in November 2025 and has immediately instilled a more pragmatic, defensive structure on the team, making the hosts less open, more compact, and more patient in their build-up play. Essen’s boss Uwe Koschinat took over in December 2024 and has built a more proactive system on the pitch, one that can be flexible in their approach to the game, switching between a higher tempo build-up, aggressive pressing and quick transitions, or overloading the flanks.
The contrast between these two sides, and the way they play, will make for an interesting chess match on the field on Saturday, with Essen’s more polished and established style of play likely to come out on top as they look to take the three points home with them.
Essen to snag all the points
SC Rot-Weiss Essen are a much more established 3.Liga side than SSV Ulm and while the stats and H2H record slightly favour Ulm, Essen should be the favorites in this one with odds of 1.54.
Tactical shift
Dotchev has turned his side around from an open and positive side into one that is more organised in a deep block and more risk-averse, relying on quick counters or long balls rather than playing the ball around the back.
Form and outlook
The visitors are likely to have too much quality for Ulm on Saturday and their superior league position reflects that.
- Essen have lost both of their last two away games, while SSV Ulm have lost three of their last five (W1, D1, L3).
- However, Essen bounced back from a disappointing 6-1 away defeat to VfB Stuttgart II by beating SC Verl 1-0 at home, and Ulm’s last three results have been a 3-2 away defeat to 1860 Munich, a 2-0 home loss to Viktoria Koeln 1904, and a 1-1 away draw at Osnabrueck.
- The home side are more likely to sit deep and try to catch Essen off guard, so we’re going for an away win and over 2.5 total goals here, with odds of 1.35, and BTTS, with odds of 1.51, to complete our selections for this match-up.
