Will Bochum pass the red lantern?
For the second time this season, SC Freiburg will play a Friday night match. The Breisgauers, but especially Mark Flekken, will not remember the first one of this kind very fondly. A fortnight ago, the goalkeeper’s blunder led to the 3-1 defeat against BVB. However, it was the only defeat so far for coach Christian Streich’s team, who can talk of an extremely successful start with six points from three matches.
They will now be looking to build on this in their second home game of the new season. In any case, the odds are clearly in favour of Sport-Club ahead of the match between Freiburg and Bochum, who have not lost any of their last six games in front of a home crowd against their upcoming opponents and are therefore clear favourites going into this opening match of the 4th matchday in the Bundesliga
Of course, the visitors’ messed-up start also plays a decisive role, because with zero points and a goal difference of 3:12, the team of coach Thomas Reis, who of course hopes for a defiant reaction after the 0:7 defeat against FC Bayern on Friday evening, currently graces the bottom of the table. It therefore takes imagination and the courage to take (excessive) risks to make a prediction in the direction of the relegation candidates between Freiburg and Bochum.
Freiburg – Statistics & current form
For only the fourth time in their own Bundesliga history, SC Freiburg already have six points on their account after three completed games. Incidentally, this figure has only been surpassed once before – in the previous season, when seven points were on the books after three matchdays. In all four cases, however, in which the first three matches resulted in at least two victories, the Breisgau team finished the season in the top half of the table.
In the current season, too, the likeable Black Forest team is definitely on the cards, even though it is not yet clear how the double burden of the Europa League will affect the results in the league. But until the international stage kicks off, Streich’s side will be looking to continue making a splash in the top flight and bag their first home win of 2022/23 on Friday night.
Freiburg fight the Friday curse
In addition to the solid impressions from the first matches, the strength after resting balls speaks for the Sport-Club. Traditionally, Vincenzo Grifo hits excellent standards. He also has strong headers in Matthias Ginter and Michael Gregoritsch, for example. Speaking of heading power: Only three teams scored more headed goals than SCF in the first three match days. Bochum, on the other hand, have conceded five goals from standard situations and five goals from headers. Regrettably, they lead both categories.
Despite the fact that the European Cup contenders have lost their past three Friday matches across the season and could suffer three Bundesliga defeats in a row at home for only the third time in the Streich era (also across the season), we believe a bet on the home win pays off between Freiburg and Bochum.
Maxi Eggestein, who played through the previous week despite a broken wrist and didn’t let on, will not be available this time. Yannik Keitel, young Robert Wagner or newcomer Merlin Röhl are potential alternatives. However, Streich may also opt for a more offensive approach and bring on Kyereh. The injured Ezekwem, Höler, Kübler and Schade are also missing.
Predicted line-up of Freiburg:
Flekken – Sildillia, Lienhart, Ginter, Günter – Keitel, Höfler – Sallai, Doan, Grifo – Gregoritsch
Last matches played by Freiburg:
Bundesliga
20/08/2022 – VfB Stuttgart 0 – 1 SC Freiburg
13/08/2022 – SC Freiburg 1 – 3 Borussia Dortmund
06/08/2022 – Augsburg 0 – 4 SC Freiburg
DFB Cup
31/07/2022 – Kaiserslautern 1 – 2 SC Freiburg
Friendly club matches
23/07/2022 – Strasbourg 3 – 3 SC Freiburg
Germany Bochum – Statistics & current form
Even in the run-up to the season, VfL Bochum were considered the hottest relegation candidates in the Bundesliga. In the traditionally difficult second year after promotion, it currently looks as if the Ruhr team will find itself in the bottom of the Bundesliga table early on. After three matchdays, VfL are in last place in the table, have not yet scored a single point, but have conceded a whopping twelve goals.
Even if you subtract the seven goals conceded in last weekend’s home defeat by the currently overpowering FC Bayern, they have conceded five goals in the first two matchdays, which is far too many to be seriously competitive. The stability shown over long stretches last season is far from being a factor. No wonder, after all, with Bella-Kotchap and Leitsch, the supposed best centre-backs also left the club in the summer.
Will Bochum remain the league’s shooting gallery?
Despite this, Thomas Reis does not want to use the various departures as an excuse for the worst start in his own Bundesliga history. The coach himself, by the way, does not have to worry about his job despite the three defeats at the start. During the week, those responsible even held initial talks about a possible contract extension. However, these talks were postponed without any results, which could bring additional unrest into the team.
Regardless of that, we don’t think the Blue and Whites are in a position to keep up with a home-strong opponent like SCF for 90 minutes at the moment. Although the bottom team, which has already conceded seven goals (!) in the first half of a match, will be willing to keep the score level for longer this time, the bottom line is that everything points to a confident home win in the Freiburg vs. Bochum clash. However, it is quite possible that a maximum of four goals will be scored in the course of the game, because we do not believe in another crushing defeat for VfL.
Antwi-Adjei, Danilo Soares, Grave, Horn and Mousset will not play due to injury. Stafylidis, on the other hand, is set to make his comeback. The Greek may even have to start from the beginning. Even a change of system to a three-man backline does not seem out of the question. In any case, the Reis eleven will concentrate on switching actions via Asano/Holtmann and generally adopt a more defensive approach.
Predicted line-up of Bochum:
Riemann – Gamboa, Ordets, Heintz, Stafylidis – Losilla, Stöger – Asano, Holtmann – Zoller, P. Hofmann
Last matches played by Bochum:
Bundesliga
21/08/2022 – VfL Bochum 0 – 7 Bayern Munich
13/08/2022 – Hoffenheim 3 – 2 VfL Bochum
06/08/2022 – VfL Bochum 1 – 2 Mainz 05
DFB Cup
30/07/2022 – Viktoria Berlin 0 – 3 VfL Bochum
Friendly club matches
23/07/2022 – VfL Bochum 6 – 2 Antalyaspor
Freiburg – Bochum Direct comparison / H2H-Balance
This is the 17th time the two clubs have faced each other in the Bundesliga. With seven wins, three draws and six defeats, the SCF currently leads the direct comparison. The Breisgau side has not lost any of the last six first division home games against the VfL (three wins, three draws).
The most recent two duels also went to the southern Germans, who won the home game 3:0 in the pre-season and likewise prevailed 2-1 after extra time in the DFB Pokal quarter-finals in Bochum. For the first time since the period from 2000 to 2003, there could now even be three must-win games in a row for Freiburg against VfL.
Freiburg – Bochum Tip
A lot is already wrong with VfL Bochum in the still young season. Sebastian Schindzierlorz, managing director of sport, will already leave at the end of the month instead of the end of the year. The desired contract extension was postponed until the World Cup break, and the start of the season also went completely to pot, with three defeats in three league games and twelve goals conceded.
The Sport-Club, on the other hand, celebrated a solid start with six points and would now like to land their first three points in their second home game. Because, in addition to the higher quality and the home advantage, the strength in standards and the VfL weakness in resting balls clearly speaks in favour of the hosts, we are not at all surprised that the betting odds between Freiburg and Bochum swing so clearly in the direction of the home side.
We therefore bet on a home win between Freiburg and Bochum and get at least 1.50. Nine out of ten possible units are absolutely justifiable as a notional bet.
If you want to get higher odds, you can combine the home win with the Under 4.5 or aim for a “Zu Null” victory for the Streich team. The latter bet brings 2.50 at the top. Otherwise, the Freiburg victory is of course also a multiplier for a combination ticket for the fourth match day.
