Who will keep up with the leading duo?

On the last matchday, VfB Stuttgart and Borussia Dortmund were among the biggest losers from the top quartet. The Swabians wasted chances in Heidenheim and ultimately lost 2-0, while BVB was shown its limits by the record champions from Munich in a 4-0 defeat at home. On Saturday afternoon, the two teams, who are currently tied on points in third and fourth place in the standings, will now be looking to keep up with Leverkusen and Bayern

While the odds on an away win for VfB Stuttgart against Dortmund were much lower last season, online bookmakers now see the clubs as equals and expect a completely even match – with an open outcome. On the three-way market, a bet on a home win for Hoeneß’ team is worth 2.60 at the top, while 2.55 is offered for a potential triumph for the Black & Yellows. In view of this assessment, however, it would still be presumptuous to identify relevant advantages in Borussia’s favor.

In any case, many BVB supporters will probably remember the last time the two teams met. In April of this year, Terzic’s side were already leading 2-0 in Bad Cannstatt when VfB defender Mavropanos was sent off. Instead of bringing the three points home safely, however, it turned into a wild match in which the Swabians scored three goals while short-handed and Borussia ultimately had to settle for a bitter 3-3 draw. Predicting a relatively high number of goals during the match could also be a good option for the upcoming clash between VfB Stuttgart and Dortmund

VfB Stuttgart – Statistics & current form

Until matchday eight, VfB Stuttgart’s path in this Bundesliga season knew only one direction: upwards! Over the past two weekends, however, coach Sebastian Hoeneß’s team have had to deal with setbacks. A 3-2 defeat at home to TSG Hoffenheim and a 2-0 loss in the (small) Swabian derby at 1. FC Heidenheim left VfB in third place, although the club, who only managed to secure their place in Germany’s top flight last summer via relegation, can of course be more than satisfied with their performance to date.

In any case, the two aforementioned defeats should be properly classified, as Stuttgart failed against both Hoffenheim and Heidenheim not because of a stronger opponent, but primarily due to their own lack of chances. In both matches, the Swabians created heaps of high-caliber chances, but lacked the necessary coolness. Perhaps the loss of Serhou Guirassy is weighing heavier than expected…

The third-placed team’s top scorer could return to the squad next weekend. Guirassy completed individual training during the week and a decision will only be made once he has been reintegrated into team training and after a final check by the physiotherapists and doctors. It will most likely not be enough for 90 minutes, but a place on the bench, combined with a joker role, is conceivable

Will VfB run into an open knife at home?

Regardless of whether Guirassy will be involved, Hoeneß’ team’s defensive deficiencies remain. 13 goals conceded after ten matchdays sounds acceptable at first, but a third of those goals were scored in the last two matchdays. The defense did not leave a particularly stable impression and could have difficulties with BVB’s high-quality offense if it adopts a similar offensive approach as of late.

In general, the question must be allowed as to whether the Stuttgart team, which has changed in a number of positions over the summer, is already a real top team or whether it will have to learn the hard way against better-rated opponents. The fact is that the only two league games against opponents from the top six were lost with a total of eight goals conceded

Predicted line-up of VfB Stuttgart:

Dortmund – Statistics & current form

Happiness and sadness are traditionally very close together in soccer. This was also the case for Borussia Dortmund. The Black & Yellows lost 4-0 at home to FC Bayern Munich last Saturday and were accompanied into the dressing room by whistles in front of the home crowd. Three days later, Terzic’s team showed the right reaction in the CL home game against Newcastle, deservedly winning 2:0 thanks to a very mature performance and thus taking over top spot in the group of death ahead of Paris St. Germain and AC Milan.

In order to remain involved in the race for the championship and not lose touch with Leverkusen and Bayern, another top performance is needed on Saturday afternoon. The fact that BVB have performed very stably in the calendar year to date, conceding just two defeats in 29 league games and also remaining unbeaten in 17 consecutive BL games in the run-up to the FCB defeat, gives hope in this regard.

BVB are unbeaten in seven away BL matches

In addition, there is – purely statistically – no doubt that Niclas Füllkrug and Co. will not score this time. The last time the reigning runners-up went two Bundesliga games in a row without scoring was in 2015 under Jürgen Klopp. In fact, the Black & Yellows’ good offense, which has always scored at least three times in the past three away games (ten goals in total), is the main reason why we are taking a closer look at the odds on the visitors’ three-goal win in the VfB Stuttgart v Dortmund match. Incidentally, anyone who believes that the fourth-placed team will score in both halves at the MHPArena can get a proud 3.00 as the highest odds.

Although Borussia are at the end of their third English week in a row, we don’t see any excessive problems in terms of fatigue. On the one hand, because a home game in the Premier League was on the agenda during the week. On the other hand, because coach Terzic was able to rotate well. Marco Reus was only substituted late on, Malen sat on the bench for 90 minutes, and Bynoe-Gittens, Wolf, Haller and Bensebaini were not used at all. We therefore assume that the coach will change his team again in a number of positions and bring in fresh personnel. However, there should be no way around the in-form Ryerson, Hummels and Brandt.

Predicted Dortmund line-up:

VfB Stuttgart – Dortmund head-to-head comparison / H2H result

For the 107th time, the traditional clubs will face each other in the top tier of German soccer. With 41 wins compared to 40 defeats and 25 draws, Borussia Dortmund has a razor-thin lead. In the more recent past, however, the hand has swung even more strongly in the direction of black and yellow.

BVB have not lost any of their last five Bundesliga matches against Stuttgart (four wins, one draw) and have only conceded a single defeat in their last nine league encounters. At home, however, the Swabians have just one three-pointer from twelve matches. VfB have lost on nine occasions

VfB Stuttgart – Dortmund betting tip

Sebastian Hoeneß is doing an excellent job at VfB Stuttgart. In the previous season, the nephew of Uli Hoeneß led the club to relegation and third place in 2023/24 after eleven matchdays. This weekend, however, the soccer coach will be up against a personal nemesis, as Hoeneß has yet to win a single one of his five matches against Borussia Dortmund. But that is by no means the only reason why we see Black & Yellow as the favorites.

We believe that Terzic’s team is slightly stronger up front, has gained a lot of confidence from the 2-0 home win against Newcastle and could benefit from the home side’s attacking style of play. It is not yet certain that VfB’s bold approach will also work against the league’s top teams. They lost 5-1 to RB Leipzig and 3-2 to TSG Hoffenheim, while defensive deficiencies were also evident in the 2-0 defeat to Heidenheim the previous week.

Our preferred approach is therefore to place a bet on an away win between VfB Stuttgart and Dortmund. This can be played online at Bet3000 sports betting at top odds of 2.55. We select four units as the stake and also point out that Borussia have only lost one of their last twelve away games in Bad Cannstatt. At the same time, we should also mention that we expect a fairly high-scoring top match.