Gladbach captain Martin Stranzl is out for eight weeks with a fractured eye socket. PATRIK STOLLARZ/AFP/Getty Images

Borussia Monchengladbach players have held crisis talks as they head into their Champions League debut against Sevilla on Tuesday sitting bottom of the Bundesliga.

Gladbach were the best Bundesliga team in the second half of the 2014-2015 season, winning 39 points and conceding only 10 goals after the winter break to finish third behind champions Bayern Munich and runners-up Wolfsburg.

That run saw Lucien Favre's side qualify for the Champions League group stages for the first time in their history, but their poor Bundesliga form is overshadowing their midweek trip to Europa League winners Sevilla.

During the summer, Germany internationals Max Kruse and Christoph Kramer left the club. Though the Foals brought in Bayer Leverkusen attacker Josip Drmic as well as Hannover captain Lars Stindl as replacements for their outgoing stars, they have so far been unable to fill the void.

The Foals suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at Borussia Dortmund in the first match of the season, and in the three games that followed have seen losses against Mainz, Werder Bremen and Hamburg to leave them bottom of the table.

Favre's side have only scored only two goals and conceded 11, three of them coming in Friday's shock 3-0 home defeat to last season's relegation strugglers Hamburg.