Can Bayern climb to the top of the table for one night?

In the age of social media, people in the public eye always have to be careful what they post, how, when and where. Many professional footballers can tell you a thing or two about it. Now Steffen Baumgart has also put his foot in his mouth. Over the weekend, his private Instagram account showed that the FC Köln coach had apparently used the international break to go on a short vacation to Lisbon with his family. Of course, the hate messages and “slacker accusations” were not long in coming, especially as the coach’s city trip was probably accompanied by a three-day training break at the Geißbockheim

Since everyone is free to interpret and evaluate things for themselves, we’ll take it with a sense of humor and can at least be sure that the team and head coach have recharged their batteries (and the sun) before the exhausting end-of-year spurt. This will also be needed on Friday evening when the relegation-threatened traditional club from the cathedral city meets the record champions to kick off the 12th matchday in the Bundesliga. Almost all statistics in the run-up to this match indicate that the only way to be successful between Cologne and Bayern is to bet on the current second-placed team in the table

The unusual match date for FCB on Friday evening at 8:30 pm has once again caused a stir in the Munich camp and led to a lack of understanding. Numerous national team players only returned to Säbener Straße in the course of Wednesday. It was therefore hardly possible to prepare in detail for the visit to the Rhineland. However, as the two clubs are (perceived to be) worlds apart in terms of quality, momentum and confidence, the Cologne v Bayern prediction is not really influenced by potential risk factors. The probability of a sensational coup for the home side is negligible

Cologne – Statistics & current form

1. FC Köln are currently playing the second-worst Bundesliga season in the club’s history. The cathedral city club have only managed to pick up a meagre six points so far. The bleak reality is 17th place in the interim rankings, two points behind the safety margin. Although the position at this early stage of the season is not yet a colossal cause for concern, coach Steffen Baumgart’s team only recorded one win in the first eleven matchdays – a 3:1 home win in the derby against Borussia Mönchengladbach.

In the games before the international break, the Rhinelanders again failed to deliver. Feasible tasks in Bochum or at home against Augsburg could not be solved to the fullest satisfaction, both times the “Effzeh” had to settle for a 1:1 draw. There was also a heavy 0:6 defeat in Leipzig, which could well have implications for the upcoming match against the runners-up in the table

Cologne with clear defeats against the top clubs

The Billy Goats have lost all four of their games against teams in the top five of the table so far. They have not managed to score a goal of their own, instead conceding twelve (!) goals, an average of three per match. We therefore lack the imagination to bet on the home side winning a point on Friday evening. Much more interesting are the odds that Cologne and Bayern will decide the game in the first half. Already against RB Leipzig (0:4) and Leverkusen (0:2), Cologne were virtually hopelessly behind after just 45 minutes. There is also the threat of an early deficit against the record champions.

One of the reasons for this is the fact that the team at the bottom of the table has not won a Bundesliga game in 19 (!) matches this season and has also lost all of its last nine home matches against FC Bayern. To make matters worse, Baumgart’s team has the weakest offense in the German top flight and has only scored nine goals so far. Although the underdogs are slightly stronger at home and have only conceded nine of their 23 goals at home, the “Effzeh” can expect a brutally difficult home game in which they will have to be careful not to run into an open knife with their usual wild and courageous attacking approach.

Cologne’s expected line-up:

Bayern – Statistics & current form

Many German internationals will be happy and relieved to be back in their beloved surroundings at Säbener Straße after a horror week at the DFB. First and foremost Leroy Sané, who made an inexplicable mistake in the international match against Austria (0:2), punched his opponent in the face and was quite rightly sent off with a red card. The winger now faces a severe punishment in national team kit, but Sané is allowed to play in the Bundesliga.

This is extremely important from Bayern’s point of view, as the left-footer has always been involved in at least one goal in his last seven league games. With eight goals and six assists, Sané is not only one of the best scorers in the league, but is also arguably in the best form of his life at club level. If you want to bet that the FCB star will also get on the scoresheet on Friday evening, you can play at attractive odds of 2.21 at DAZN Bet ahead of the Cologne v Bayern clash

Will Sané, Kane and Co. sweep past Cologne?

Sané is, of course, not the only attacking player at Munich to have caught the eye in recent weeks and months. Harry Kane has exceeded the huge expectations placed on him so far and is chasing all records. After eleven match days, the Englishman has 17 goals to his name. By comparison, the entire Cologne team has scored nine goals. The captain of the Three Lions has scored at least one brace in three consecutive matches. For the visit to the cathedral city, we can imagine Kane as the first goalscorer of the match and, in the event of success, we can get 3.30 as top odds.

In addition to the outstanding individual quality of Thomas Tuchel’s team, there are also various other statistics that clearly swing the pendulum in the direction of southern Germany at the start of matchday 12. Bayern, for example, have not lost any of their last 52 Bundesliga matches against opponents who were in one of the bottom three places before the start of the matchday (44 wins, eight draws).

No other team in the top flight of German soccer has faced fewer shots from opponents and no club from Europe’s top five leagues has scored more goals at national level. In seven out of eleven league matches, FCB led at half-time and always left the pitch as winners in the end. Tuchel’s side have also scored the most goals in the first 45 minutes (16), so we’re also focusing on the HT2/FT2 double result prediction for Cologne v Bayern.

Predicted Bayern line-up:

Cologne – Bavaria Direct comparison / H2H balance

104 competitive matches have been played between 1. FC Köln and Bayern to date, 98 of them in the first division alone. With 51 wins, 24 draws and 23 defeats, Munich are the clear leaders in the Bundesliga standings. In the recent past, it was even rarer for Cologne to win against the record champions.

The Billy Goats, for example, have lost their last nine consecutive home league matches against FCB, meaning the last time they beat the German league leaders in a competitive match was in 2009. Also interesting: Bayern have led at half-time in seven of the last eight encounters

Cologne – Bayern betting tip

The last time these two clubs met, Bayern fans in particular will remember it fondly. On matchday 34 of the previous season, there were initially signs that the “Effzeh” could help Dortmund in the championship race, but Jamal Musiala’s winning goal ultimately secured not only a 2-1 away win, but also the trophy. It is unlikely to be quite as emotional on Friday evening, even though emotionality, commitment and aggression are probably the only (talent-free) virtues that the Baumgart team can bring to bear against Munich.

The bottom line, however, is that there are no two opinions on who will leave the pitch at the RheinEnergieStadion as the winner. The Cologne vs. Bayern betting odds underline the fact that Tuchel’s side are huge favorites to win the Bundesliga for the sixth time in a row. In the last five games alone, Kane, Sané and Co. have scored a whopping 22 goals, with the second-placed team leading four times before the break. A continuation of this dominance is definitely on the cards on Friday evening

In our eyes, it is therefore only logical to predict that Cologne and Bayern will lead at the break and, as expected, win in the end.