Some cracks at the season opener
The 60th season in the top flight of German football is upon us and tips and betting odds on all the games on Matchday 1 in the Bundesliga can be read below! It opens with Eintracht’s home match against the champions from Munich.
For the first time in eight years, the champions from the Isar will start the new season without their top player Robert Lewandowski. With Sadio Mane, however, they have immediately provided a prominent replacement.
The Berlin derby between Union and Hertha also promises to be exciting. The city duel has not been a good place for the “Old Lady” lately: In the last three comparisons, it was always the kickers from the Wuhlheide who rejoiced at the end!
The cup winners from Leipzig are once again challenged by one of their favourite opponents, Stuttgart, and the top match takes place on Saturday evening when Borussia Dortmund hosts the Werkself from Leverkusen.
Frankfurt vs. Bayern Munich – 05 August, 20:30
The winner of the Europa League gets a visit from the champions. The Hessians will rely on the home bonus in the match between the two participants in the upcoming edition of the Champions League: Two of the past three home games against the Munich side have been victorious.
The visitors, for their part, will be hoping for a successful debut for Sadio Mane. The former Liverpool striker is now expected to fill the XXL footprint of Robert Lewandowski. Kingsley Coman, who is still suspended for two games due to a card ban from last season, will not be able to play for Bayern.
For the match at Deutsche Bank Park in the Bundesliga on Matchday 1, betting on a goal by Mane seems to be profitable. The attacker will certainly be particularly motivated for his league debut, as he wants to show that he has what it takes to replace Lewy with a goal.
In the only test match in which Mane played against DC United from the MLS, he also scored a goal. The 30-year-old also scored in the Super Cup last weekend. In what was the highest-scoring match since the competition was relaunched around ten years ago, the Munich side beat RB Leipzig in a commanding, but ultimately narrow 5-3 victory.
A corner kick goal would not be a big surprise in this match: After all, the two teams with the most goals from standard situations face each other in the duel in Frankfurt!
Union Berlin vs. Hertha – 06 August, 15:30
Derbytime on the Spree! The home side will be keen to extend their recent run of three wins against Hertha. However, the guests, for their part, are eager for a fresh start after last year’s disastrous campaign.
After the BSC was relegated to the second Bundesliga by a hair’s breadth, things should now be better under new coach Sandro Schwarz. The test matches, however, were not very successful. Hertha lost the final three preparation games against teams from the island such as West Brom and Nottingham.
The DFB Cup opener against Braunschweig also turned out to be an embarrassing elimination against Braunschweig – a team that, as a poorly-formed promoted team in the second Bundesliga, was still without a goal of its own this season after two rounds of matches. For the match at the Wuhlheide in the Bundesliga on Matchday 1, tips on a home win seem promising.
In contrast to their opponents, Union were much more stable in their preparations and brought in Jordan Siebatcheu, a promising striker from Young Boys in Bern, during the summer break.
The 22-time goalscorer in the Super League last season also proved his ability in the final test match against Nottingham with the winning goal for 1:0. On top of that, he scored against Chemnitz in the DFB Cup last Monday, when the home side secured their ticket to the second round after extra time.
Siebatcheu will undoubtedly play a key role in Union’s attack this season, especially since Taiwo Awoniyi (15) and Grischa Prömel (8), the two best goal scorers of last season, left the club in the summer.
Mönchengladbach vs. Hoffenheim – 06 August, 15:30
With Gladbach against Hoffenheim, a duel is taking place whose last edition was not long ago. The teams already faced each other on the final matchday of last season.
Back then, TSG suffered a painful 1:5 defeat in Mönchengladbach. Breel Embolo scored one goal, but the powerful striker was sold to Monaco in the summer and can no longer play for the “Fohlen”. The club’s management has not yet provided the new coach Daniel Farke with an adequate replacement in the offensive line, which is why this part of the team can be considered weakened.
The opponents also have a new coach on the bench in Andre Breitenreiter. The Hannoverian even has a Swiss championship title on his CV since last season, after achieving this feat in the service of FC Zurich.
Both teams also completed a successful preparation phase in which they did not lose a single test match. For the duel at Borussia-Park in the Bundesliga on Matchday 1, which is sure to be very even this time, predictions of a draw therefore suggest themselves.
The statistics also speak against a win for the visitors: Daniel Farke, a new coach for the home side, will be making his debut in the match and since 1992, when Bernd Krauss lost 5-2 to Saarbrücken on his first assignment as the new Fohlen coach, the following 20 new managers in Gladbach have always managed to avoid defeat on their first day in charge (9-11-0)!
Augsburg vs. Freiburg – 06 August, 15:30
The FCA goes into the opening game with personnel worries. With players such as Dorsch or Vargas, several regulars will be absent for coach Enrico Maaßen’s debut. At least for Dorsch, who has to miss the match for a longer period of time, a replacement was found last week. Elvis Rexhbecaj was brought in from Wolfsburg to play in central midfield.
He will play alongside Arne Maier, formerly of Hertha. The British player Reece Oxford, who is still in rehabilitation training after a serious injury, will also not be able to play. It will be a special game for Ermedin Demirovic.
The Bosnian played for his opponents in the last two seasons before joining the Fuggerstädtern in the summer. It is exactly the other way round with Michael Gregoritsch, who moved to the Black Forest from Augsburg.
The vice cup winners, however, also had to accept a painful loss of personnel last week. The normally very efficient offensive player Lucas Höler was injured in the SC training camp. The 28-year-old had scored a whopping seven goals and nine assists in the Breisgau jersey last season and did not miss a single competitive match.
Without him, the visitors’ offensive is now even more dependent on the services of Vincenzo Grifo. The club’s top scorer of the last season has been scoring again recently. He scored a goal in the final test match against Strasbourg.
For the encounter in Augsburg in the 1Bundesliga on Matchday 1, betting tips on his next goal are worth considering. The aforementioned fact that the home side’s absences also affect the defence also speaks in favour of this.
Bochum vs. Mainz – 06 August, 15:30
VfL have the lowest squad value in the Bundesliga and against this background will probably fight against relegation again. Last year, however, this endeavour succeeded as a promoted team with a 13th place finish.
In terms of personnel, the hosts have lost ground, especially in defence: German U21 international Armel Bella-Kotchap was sold to Southampton in the Premier League. His partner in central defence Maxim Leitsch is also no longer on board and will play for the upcoming opponents. In the offensive, hopes are once again pinned on Philipp Hofmann.
The newcomer from KSC has always scored in double figures in the past three seasons in the German Unterhaus, and last season alone he scored 19 goals! Now he wants to prove that he can also hold his own in the top flight.
Mainz also share the fate of the departure to the Premier League of a defender who is as young as he is deserving. Thus, Moussa Niakhate has left the carnival club for Nottingham. With Jeremiah St. Juste, another important player in this part of the team left on top.
In view of the fact that both clubs will be fielding much-changed defences, which will certainly need time to settle in, the odds on a mutual goal celebration in the Bundesliga clash in Bochum on Matchday 1 will be of interest. Furthermore, from a statistical point of view, there is no sign of a win for the visitors: Mainz have never won an away opening match in the Bundesliga!
A black streak that already spans seven games (0-2-5) and is only surpassed in the history of the division by Braunschweig with nine such games.
Wolfsburg vs. Werder Bremen – 06 August, 15:30
The “Wolves” have already been able to convince in the final test matches. Against Mechelen from the Belgian Jupiler League and Brentford from the Premier League in England, triumphs were achieved and goals were not spared.
The fact that four goals were scored in both games is proof of that! The Lower Saxons also kicked off their DFB Cup campaign last weekend in Jena with a win, although admittedly only by a very narrow margin thanks to a goal in injury time.
For their part, the promoted team will rely on Marvin Ducksch and Niclas Füllkrug in the offensive. Together, the duo recorded no less than 40 goals and 15 assists in the last season of promotion! In the history of the North Germans, there has never been a duo that has scored at least 19 goals in a season. However, tips on a home win are recommended for the clash in Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga as part of the first matchday.
The 2008 champions are showing steady early form and also have home advantage on their side. In addition, the home team will be particularly motivated for the league debut of new coach Niko Kovac.
Dortmund vs. Leverkusen – 06 August, 18:30
BVB continues to be in shock: after a medical examination of king transfer Sebastien Haller revealed testicular cancer, the offensive newcomer from Amsterdam will not be able to play for his new employer in the long term.
With Erling Haaland no longer available as a dependable goalscorer after his move to the Citizens in Manchester, the home side have a personnel problem in attack.
This is actually BVB’s showpiece: Last season, the Black and Yellows had the best shot conversion rate in the league (24.5 per cent) and were 16 goals up in terms of expected goals – also the best. In addition, the 85 goals set a new club record for the season. The focus in the offensive is now even more on the second – almost as expensive – addition Karim Adeyemi.
The striker came from Red Bull Salzburg, where he was the top scorer last season and once again won the Austrian championship with the club. After last Friday’s DFB Cup victory over 1860 Munich, the home side’s hospital has also been filled with defensive newcomer Niklas Süle.
Leverkusen, for their part, will also be travelling with personnel worries. In midfield, Florian Wirtz, an extremely intelligent player, is still absent. The German international is only slowly recovering from a cruciate ligament rupture last March and will not be an option for some time. Just how much the team is missing him became clear last weekend in the DFB Cup.
The team lost 3:4 against third-division team Elversberg, which means that this competition is already over for coach Gerardo Seoane’s team. For the top match of the Bundesliga on Matchday 1, the odds on a goal by Karim Adeyemi can be placed at Value in the eyes of the betting pool.
The newcomer is particularly challenged by the absence of Haller and the departure of Haaland, but should be up to the task given his high quality. He proved this once before with a goal in BVB’s 3-0 win over 1860 Munich in the DFB Cup last Friday night.
Stuttgart vs. RB Leipzig – 07 August, 15:30
VfB started the new season last weekend with the match against Dresden in the DFB Cup. At the Saxons, who are now only in the 3rd division, the Swabians recorded a narrow 1:0 trembling victory.
Moreover, Stuttgart will be glad that they have a home match in the league for the first time. Last season, VfB were extremely weak away from home, recording just one three-pointer – only relegated Fürth undercut that haul, failing to record a single success on footballing business trips.
The guests again did not play in the cup last time, but as reigning winners of the competition they played the Super Cup on their own ground against the champions from Munich. The match ended, as described, with an entertaining 5:3 victory for the record champions.
The Leipzig team got off to a weak start, but their second-half comeback proved that the morale of the team from the Pleiße is intact.
Predictions of an away win for the clearly stronger Messestadt side in the Bundesliga clash at the Neckar on Matchday 1 are worth a recommendation. The prediction is backed up by the statistics of the last few years: The visitors have always ended the last six duels against the footballers from the Ländle with a victory!
Köln vs. Schalke 04 – 07 August, 17:30
The Effzeh can look back on a successful last season. As seventh in the final standings, they booked their participation in the qualification for the Conference League. However, the start in the DFB Cup last weekend was disappointing.
Against Regensburg from the lower league, they had to accept a penalty shoot-out defeat. For their part, the Gelsenkirchen side did not show any weakness in the cup and achieved a clear victory at Bremer SV.
Moreover, they are returning to the top flight. After the painful transition to the Unterhaus a year ago, they were promoted back to the Bundesliga as champions of the Zweite Bundesliga. Simon Terodde was the main contributor, with 30 goals to his name, making him the top scorer in the Second Bundesliga. However, it remains to be seen whether he will continue to be as accurate in the top flight.
The last time he played in the Bundesliga was three years ago, when he was still in the service of the upcoming opponents. With three goals in 23 appearances, however, his performance was severely lacking. On top of that, at 34 years of age, he is of course no longer physically fresh.
For the clash of two similarly strong teams in Cologne in the Bundesliga on Matchday 1, the expert tip is aiming for a draw.
The visitors should also keep an eye on the home side, especially in the second half: Only RB Leipzig also scored a high 63 per cent of their own goals in this period last season.
Header goals also suggest themselves: The hosts delivered 15 such goals last season, second highest after Freiburg (16), and the Schalkers even managed 17 headed goals in the Second Bundesliga – together with HSV, this represented the highest number in the German Unterhaus!
