Five fixtures are a tell tail sign of form and we enter the fifth gameweek of the Bundesliga to separate the weak from the strong.
With midweek UEFA fixtures on the go the ‘bigger teams’ might just be there for the taking, so check up on the possible upsets this week.
A tantalizing quad is on the books in this preview so be sure to get in on the big action.
Friday 17 September
Hertha Berlin 13/20
Draw 3/1
Greuther Furth 37/10
(20:30)
Hertha Berlin came away with their first win of the season beating promoted Bochum 3-1 after the international break kicking things off in a new way. Beginning the season with three straight losses was tough for the Berlin outfit and they now face off with another newly-promoted team in Greuther Further. The away team have missed the target completely without a win in their preseason friendlies as well as any of their five competitive fixtures to date. Momentum is key in this fixture and backing Hertha is a no brainer in my opinion.
Saturday 18 September
Bayern Munich 1/14
Draw 10/1
Bochum 25/1
(15:30)
Jamal Musiala starred as Bayern Munich beat RB Leipzig last gameweek. The young German scored one and made another. Robert Lewandowski put yet another goal away to make it 17 in a row across all competitions. The champions are at it again and the odds tell the tale in this matchup when Bochum make the trip to the Allianz Arena for the first time in over a decade. You can be assured players will be rested this weekend after Bayern face Barcelona in a midweek champion’s league fixture. It is beyond difficult to find any value on Bayern Munich and the Clean Sheet Home Team (Yes) at 7/10 is about the best bet you could get.
Mainz 21/20
Draw 26/10
Freiburg 49/20
(15:30)
After four game weeks, Mainz look to put a stamp on their form when they play in front of their home crowd against Freiburg. Mainz did well to secure a hard-fought victory on the road to Hoffenheim with both centre-forwards finding the back off the net to secure a 2-0 win. Freiburg are in fine form themselves, unbeaten in all competitions, however last drawing 1-1 against a 10-man Cologne via an 89th minute own goal. With nine points out of a possible 12 last season’s relegation candidates, Mainz, should see off a stubborn Freiburg.
Augsburg 3/1
Draw 29/10
Borussia Monchengladbach 8/10
(15:30)
Captain Lars Stindl missed from the penalty before international break only to secure a brace correcting his wrong in Monchengladbach’s 3-1 win over Arminia Bielefeld. The away team has managed to put their back-to-back losses behind them and secure a well-deserved three points. Augsburg sit 17th on the table after four match weeks and a fifth fixture without a loss is the start of a difficult season. It was always going to be tough to beat Union Berlin at home and securing a point in a goalless draw is a positive result, but winless in four is poor all around. Bet on the full time draw as both teams continue to find their feet.
Arminia 24/10
Draw 5/2
Hoffenheim 19/20
(15:30)
After three straight draws Arminia Bielefeld was bound to go one way or the other and a loss to Borussia Monchengladbach marked a four-game winless run for the hosts. Things in the Hoffenheim corner aren’t much better with back-to-back losses to Dortmund and Mainz, and most worrying of all is Hoffenheim were unable to register a shot on target against Mainz last gameweek. With the five games being a good indication of form, neither of these want to lose and backing a draw in this fixture is the way to go.
Cologne 39/10
Draw 31/10
RB Leipzig 6/10
(18:30)
RB Leipzig’s fixture against Bayern Munich was always going to be explosive especially against former manager and players, but the 4-1 defeat in front of home fans would have really stung and confidence will not be in the green. After three losses and a win so far in the league plus a midweek champion’s league fixture against Manchester City, Cologne will know Leipzig are there for the taking. The Billy Goats are on seven points this season with a narrow 3-2 loss at home to Bayern Munich and have managed a goal or more in each fixture. This might just be the upset of the weekend and to safeguard your bet select the Double Chance option Cologne/Draw at healthy odds of even money.
Sunday 19 September
Stuttgart 24/10
Draw 11/4
Bayer Leverkusen 1/1
(15:30)
Stuttgart fell short in their matchup with Eintracht after picking up a late red card but fought on to score an even later goal drawing the fixture 1-1. Bayer Leverkusen’s Patrick Schick found the back of the net yet again when the Eternal Bridesmaids tried to go toe-to-toe with Dortmund in a 4-3 defeat. Leverkusen love playing against Stuttgart with 17 away wins to Stuttgart’s 16 home wins. Leverkusen at even money is a wildcard to beef up any multiple.
Borussia Dortmund 4/10
Draw 39/10
Union Berlin 56/10
(17:30)
Union Berlin failed to score in their first fixture of the season hitting the woodwork three times in the process. Their unbeaten home record goes up to 19 games but now they travel to the infamous Signal-Iduna Park. Borussia Dortmund have a tough midweek fixture when they travel to Turkey to face Besiktas. BVB were led by the frontline as they usually are with an Erling Haaland brace to secure their first back-to-back wins of the season. There should be a lot of shuffling in personnel for the Black and Yellow, but goals will still be aplenty after each of Dortmund’s last four fixtures have been three or more goals. Dortmund & Additional Totals: Over 2.5 Goals is the play at 17/20.
Wolfsburg 8/10
Draw 28/10
Eintracht Frankfurt 3/1
(19:30)
Amid transfer speculation, the Serbian midfielder Filip Kostic ruled himself out of last game week’s loss to Freiburg but has since apologised and made up for it by scoring in a 1-1 draw with Stuttgart. Wolfsburg on the other hand are in winning form topping the table with 12 out of a possible 12 points making them the only team to win every fixture keeping two clean sheets for added surety. Wolfsburg to win on home soil at 8/10 is one for all multiples.
QUAD @ 11/1
Bayern Munich Home Team Clean Sheet (Yes) 7/10
Mainz Win 21/20
Bayer Leverkusen Win 1/1
Wolfsburg Win 8/10
Written by Joshua Gaillard