Soccer Germany Bundesliga Prediction

Freiburg vs Schalke - Match Preview

⚽ 23 April 2023 - 13:30 GMT +0

Freiburg kept themselves within arms reach of a first-ever Champions League qualification with a 2-1 comeback victory over Werder Bremen last weekend, a game which saw Roland Sallai and Lucas Höler assist each other! That helped maintain Freiburg’s solid league record and they should be ready to keep pushing with just six games to go, given that the only sides to defeat them across the last 12 rounds were the top two (W5, D5, L2).

Solidity alone won’t be enough for this Freiburg side to make history as they need maximum points here to provisionally leapfrog Leipzig into fourth. Improving on a run of just one win from their last five competitive home games is therefore paramount (W1, D2, L2), so perhaps their club record run of six consecutive Bundesliga home wins against promoted opposition will provide a further boost to morale.

Schalke made great progress in their mission to avoid an immediate return to the second tier by scoring five goals in a Bundesliga game for the first time since 2019 in a stunning 5-2 win over Hertha last weekend. They still remain in the bottom three, although they enter the round just three points from safety, so there’s a glimmer of hope.

That hope will largely depend on the Royal Blues improving their away form as four of their final six league games of the season will come on the road. Damningly, Schalke has only taken the lead for a league-low 45 minutes away from home all season, and that was in their only away win (W1, D5, L7), so ending a run of three defeats and nine conceded goals without reply at this venue may be a big ask.

📋 Players to watch: Although Höler has scored each of his last four Freiburg goals away from home, he did hit the opener in this exact fixture in Schalke’s last relegation campaign. Schalke’s revival has largely coincided with the red-hot form of Marius Bülter. He has six goals and one assist in his last seven games and also scored in his side’s only away league win this season.

⚡ Hot streak: Freiburg is on a run of four straight Bundesliga H2H wins without a reply against Schalke, a club record against a specific opponent.

Bayer Leverkusen vs RB Leipzig - Match Preview

⚽ 23 April 2023 - 15:30 GMT +0

After progressing to a European semi-final for the first time since 2001/02 in midweek, Bayer Leverkusen swiftly turn their attentions back to the Bundesliga race for Europe. Xabi Alonso’s men entered this round six points adrift of the top five, so their most likely finish will be a Conference League place unless they can eat up the ground… or win the Europa League!

Confidence should be high around the BayArena after Leverkusen’s seven-game unbeaten Bundesliga run (W5, D2), which is a testament to the improvement Alonso has inspired since taking over the club as they lingered in the bottom half. Even so, extending that run here could be tricky as they are yet to win a Bundesliga home game when RB Leipzig has rolled into town (D3, L3).

Marco Rose’s Leipzig could do Leverkusen a favour further down the line if they win the DFB Pokal and extend the European places to seventh, although the more pressing matter for themselves is to cling onto their top-four place. The Red Bulls entered this round with just a one-point buffer to fifth, but with Freiburg playing at home to Schalke just prior to kick-off here, they may well need maximum points to reclaim the fourth spot.

A flurry of first-half goals saw Leipzig record their first league win from a losing position in over a year last time out (3-2 vs Augsburg), yet they’ll hope to keep it tighter this time around given their three prior domestic wins were all accompanied by clean sheets. In any case, it looks likely this game will be decided one way or another as Rose has never overseen a draw after seven personal meetings with Leverkusen (W3, L4)!

📋 Players to watch: Leverkusen’s 19-year-old prodigy Florian Wirtz has burst onto the scene in some style by contributing to three goals across his last two home games, helping him post an average Flashscore match rating of 8.1! Trying to outdo him will be Leipzig’s Timo Werner, who became the 54th member of the illustrious Bundesliga 100 club with his 99th and 100th strikes in the last round.

⚡ Hot stat: Leverkusen have scored a Bundesliga-high 15 goals in the 15 minutes directly following half-time this season.

B. Monchengladbach vs Union Berlin - Match Preview

⚽ 23 April 2023 - 17:30 GMT +0

Entering this round 12 points above the bottom three and eight from the top six, Borussia Mönchengladbach realistically has little to play for other than a top-half finish in the final six rounds. Even so, Daniel Farke’s Foals hampered Frankfurt’s European hopes with a 1-1 draw last round, with Union Berlin next on the list of European aspirants to attempt to end Gladbach’s four-game unbeaten run (W1, D3).

A home return could be a positive for Gladbach after losing just one of their last eight games here (W4, D3, L1). They’ll need all the motivation they can get after posting a lower win rate in Bundesliga games against Union than any other side (W1, D2, L4). Even a bright start might not necessarily bring any reward, as only Augsburg (21) have dropped more points than Gladbach’s 16 from winning positions this season (W9, D5, L2).

It just so happens that Union also dropped a lead against Bochum in the previous round, whilst that 1-1 draw forms part of a concerning run of just two victories across their last ten competitive matches (W2, D4, L4). Whilst that run has seen them eliminated from both the Europa League and the DFB Pokal, they remain on course for their first-ever Champions League qualification through the Bundesliga, although their dream of a first-ever title appears to be slipping away.

Playing away from home is unlikely to arrest their slump if Union’s recent travelling record is anything to go by. Urs Fischer’s men haven’t won on the road since February (D2, L4), and with four scoring blanks within that run, the number one area for improvement is clear if the Iron Ones are to further tighten their solid Bundesliga H2H record, and more importantly their grip on a top-four position.

📋 Players to watch: Marcus Thuram has made a joint career-best 18 goal contributions for Gladbach in this Bundesliga campaign (G13, A5) and his next will be his 50th for the club. As for Union, Kevin Behrens kickstarted their 2-1 comeback victory in the reverse H2H and has also scored in three of his last five appearances.

⚡ Hot stat: Only Wolfsburg have a worse win rate as pre-match favourites in the Bundesliga than Gladbach’s 36% (W5, D4, L5).