This weekend could see Bremen bounce back, goals at Kaiserslautern, a second half steal from Stuttgart and another dominant Dortmund display. Meanwhile, Hoffenheim’s Roberto Firmino and Hertha’s Pierre-Michel Lasogga could be surprise tips to score, although there’s little unexpected in seeing Klass-Jan Huntelaar backed for goals a plenty following his recent form. And for Bayern, it’s all about the numbers game.
Friday, 21st October
Augsburg v Werder Bremen (7.30pm)
Home win: 3/1 Draw: 13/5 Away win: 83/100
Betting tip: The form book went out of the window for both of these sides last week, with Werder Bremen failing to find the net in a 2-0 home defeat to Dortmund and Augsburg proving unlikely winners, 1-0 away at Mainz. One week on though, and things look likely to return to normal, particularly given Augsburg’s poor home form and Bremen’s contrastingly impressive away displays. Augsburg left it late to beat Mainz last week, with a goal three minutes from time, but so far this season the newly promoted side have yet to taste victory at home, having managed just one draw and three defeats. Werder Bremen have fared slightly better with a memorable win away at Hoffenheim and two creditable draws. The visitors have also averaged two goals a game on their travels this season, which, when combined with Augsburg’s record of registering less than a goal a game at home, makes a bet on Werder Bremen to win 0-2 at 35/4 a tempting one.
Saturday, 22nd October
Kaiserslautern v SC Freiburg (2.30pm)
Home win: 19/20 Draw: 13/5 Away win: 13/5
Betting tip: Recent weeks have seen the notion of defending dispensed with for both Kaiserslautern and SC Freiburg. Both teams have scored and shipped a significant amount of goals, which makes this encounter all the more intriguing. SC Freiburg’s last six games have seen an average of just over three goals per game, while Kaiserslautern’s have produced almost exactly the same amount. Three appears to be the lucky number in the form books too, with both sides claiming 2-1 wins against each other last season. With the likes of Demba Papiss Cisse still on form for Freiburg, goals certainly seem likely, which makes a bet on exactly three goals being scored, at odds of 31/10, a sound punt. It could prove particularly lucrative for those registering for a new account with bwin and receiving a free £25 bet – using it to back this outcome could see a return of £102.50 if the tip proves successful.
Nuremburg v VfB Stuttgart (2.30pm)
Home win: 31/20 Draw: 5/2 Away win: 31/20
Betting tip: Stuttgart have been in fine form recently, having secured back to back wins against Hoffenheim and Kaiserslautern in the Bundesliga over the past couple of weeks. The Swabians will be keen to carry their recent form forward too, particularly against a poor Nuremburg side without a win in four Bundesliga games. Bruno Labbadia’s men have made a habit of leaving their scoring until after the break in recent weeks, with each of their last three wins seeing Stuttgart score exactly two goals during the second half. All of which makes odds of 21/4 on VfB Stuttgart scoring exactly two goals in the second half against Nuremburg an intriguing prospect and certainly one bet to consider this weekend.
Hoffenheim v Borussia Monchengladbach (2.30pm)
Home win: Evens Draw: 12/5 Away win: 13/5
Betting tip: Hoffenheim will be looking to end a run of three games without a goal in the Bundesliga this weekend and Borussia Monchengladbach could be the team to provide a welcome tonic. Gladbach’s run of single-goal games came to an abrupt end last week against Bayer Leverkusen with a 2-2 draw and the visitors traditionally struggle away from home. With Hoffenheim favourites to win, a first goalscorer bet could prove the most lucrative opportunity for Bundesliga betting fans and Roberto Firmino could be just the man to back. The 20-year-old has discovered his goalscoring touch at the Rhein-Neckar-Arena in recent games, with the Brazilian notching up three goals in three games for Hoffenheim. Having opened the scoring for Hoffenheim in two of the side’s last three home games, odds of 9/1 on Firmino grabbing the first goal of the game against Borussia Monchengladbach make it worth a small punt.
Borussia Dortmund v FC Cologne (2.30pm)
Home win: 33/100 Draw: 17/4 Away win: 27/4
Betting tip: It’s good to see Borussia Dortmund returning to form in the Bundesliga in recent weeks, but despite rising up the table, the goals have yet to flow like they did last year in this current campaign. Facing off against a Cologne team which, led by Lukas Podolski, is more than capable of putting in a solid display could prove a tough task too. Whilst Dortmund are likely winners, hedging your bets with a half-time score prediction of 1-0 to Dortmund could prove a shrewd move. The home side took a 1-0 lead into the break in their last Bundesliga game and last season led 1-0 at the break against Cologne in both of the fixtures between the two sides. You can get odds of 12/5 on Dortmund being 1-0 up at half time.
Hertha Berlin v Mainz 05 (2.30pm)
Home win: 19/20 Draw: 5/2 Away win: 27/10
Betting tip: Mainz are in terrible form at the moment and currently lie second bottom, with the fairytale of last season a distant memory for fans and players alike. In contrast, Hertha Berlin are enjoying a steady start to their return to the Bundesliga, built primarily on some recent solid home form. With Mainz conceding 14 goals in six games, it seems likely that Hertha could find the net this Saturday and the man to watch could well be Pierre-Michel Lasogga. The 19-year-old German is certainly one for the future and scored two goals in Hertha’s last home win against Cologne. Against Mainz, he could well add to his tally and with odds of 6/1 on Lasogga scoring the first goal of the game, the striker could be one to back on Saturday.
Hamburg v VfL Wolfsburg (5.30pm)
Home win: 23/20 Draw: 5/2 Away win: 21/10
Wolfsburg have enjoyed their recent visits to Hamburg in the Bundesliga with two of their last three encounters on the road ending in 3-1 away wins for the Wolves. Despite this, Hamburg are likely to provide a stern challenge thanks to a new manager and a new sense of hope. However, with the same hopeless defence facing off against Wolfsburg, I would be confident of the visitors finding the back of the net on more than one occasion. While a 3-1 away win may be a little too precise given Wolfsburg’s own defensive frailties, odds of 19/4 on the away side scoring three or more goals looks tempting. With Wolfsburg striker Mario Mandzukic hitting form with three goals in two games, a small punt could see big winnings.
Sunday, 18th October
Bayer Leverkusen v Schalke 04 (2.30pm)
Home win: 1/1 Draw: 5/2 Away win: 5/2
Betting tip: Despite Schalke 04 facing a difficult away trip this Sunday, the Gelsenkirchen side have the Bundesliga’s most in-form striker in Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. Huntelaar has been in incredible touch of late, with four goals in the blues’ last three league games.
The Dutchman has also proved lethal on the road in Europe too, with two goals in Thursday’s Europa League away trip to AEK Larnaca. With odds of 11/2 available on Huntelaar repeating the trick with two or more goals against Leverkusen this Sunday, you may not want to let this great bet slip away.
Hannover 96 v Bayern Munich (5.30pm)
Home win: 27/4 Draw: 15/4 Away win: 37/100
Betting tip: Bayern Munich continue to enjoy imperious form both at home and away in the Bundesliga this season. But if Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Napoli taught us anything, it is that the Bavarians are still human.
They come up against a Hannover side enjoying an impressive run at home, with recent victories over the likes of Werder Bremen and reigning champions Borussia Dortmund.
Despite this, Bayern remain a force to be reckoned with and, should the goals start flowing, could prove difficult to stop. The safest tip might therefore be to bet on the number of overall goals scored in the game. Over the last eight meetings between the two, matches have seen an average of four goals per game and with odds of 4/1 on exactly four goals being scored this Sunday, your bet could be covered whether its 3-1, 2-2 or even 4-0.
Failing that, a bet on Mario Gomez to score yet another hat-trick at 11/1 could prove a shrewd tip.
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