Berlin: Old rivals Werder Bremen and Hamburg meet in the 108th Nordderby on Saturday but, instead of challenging for European places or even the title, the two Bundesliga stalwarts will be battling for survival.

Bremen are 15th in the table on 23 points, with only goal difference keeping them ahead of Mainz 05 in the promotion/relegation play-off spot, while Hamburg are stuck in the drop zone, a further six points adrift in 17th.

In a sign of their difficult seasons, both teams have changed coaches since their goalless draw at the end of September.

Alexander Nouri left Bremen at the end of October to be replaced by Florian Kohfeldt while Hamburg sacked Markus Gisdol, who left them to safety last season, last month and brought in Bernd Hollerbach, a former defender for the club.

Bremen were 17th when Kohfeldt, previously in charge of the reserve team, took over for his first senior coaching role.

Despite his lack of top-level experience, the 35-year-old oversaw a quick improvement and a run of five wins and three draws in 13 games under his leadership has improved their position.

However, defeat at Freiburg last Saturday means that the four-times Bundesliga champions, who have spent only one season outside the Bundesliga since it was founded in 1963, are still in a very precarious situation.

“The Nordderby is something special, there’s no doubt about that,” he said. “I’m already looking forward to the moment when we can leave the hotel and savour the atmosphere.” Hollerbach, a trained butcher, arrived at Hamburg with a reputation for a no-nonsense approach but his four games in charge have so far yielded two draws and two defeats.

Hamburg are now winless in the league since November 26, a run of 10 games.

The Dinos are the Bundesliga’s only ever-present side, and a giant clock at the Volksparkstadion shows how long they have been there, but that record has looked increasingly under threat in the last few years.

The three-times former Bundesliga winners and 1983 European champions have been involved in two relegation playoffs in the last four seasons and narrowly escaped another one in the last campaign.

The club has been struggling financially for several years and a turbulent presidential election last Sunday illustrated the difficulties it faces.

Bernd Hoffmann, previously at the helm from 2003 to 2011, was elected by 585 votes to 560 but it was a divisive campaign chants of “Hoffman out” were heard shortly after his win.

“It’s a brutal task in an unforgiving situation,” said Hoffman after his win. “Cristiano Ronaldo is not going to fall from the sky but we hope that, with a lot of work, better times will come.”

—Reuters