Bundesliga Preview: Dortmund v Schalke headlines German football’s return
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Odds and preview for this weekend’s fixtures
At long last, the Bundesliga is back this weekend. And we’ve got a full slate of fixtures to enjoy, including the Revierderby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04.
Can Dortmund win to keep the pressure on Bayern Munich? Or has the break given Schalke a chance to turn their form around? We’ve previewed that highly-anticipated clash, as well as the best of the action elsewhere.
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (Saturday, 14:30)
With nine games left to play, Dortmund are four points behind league leaders Bayern and 5/1 to finish as champions.
Dortmund are clear 1/2 favourites here, having been in much better form than their rivals before the break. Lucien Favre’s side have won seven of their last eight league games, while Schalke are without a win in seven.
Of course, such an extended break means form may go out of the window. The draw is priced at 13/4, while 5/1 says Schalke win at Signal Iduna Park for the second year running.
The hosts can be thrilling going forward, with Erling Braut Haaland 13/5 to open the scoring. Jadon Sancho is also 5/4 to register his 15th assist of the campaign.
As good as they are in attack, Dortmund’s defence can be vulnerable. We go 2/1 for Dortmund to win and Both Teams to Score.
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (Saturday, 17:30)
Gladbach are currently fourth, six points behind Bayern. But they’ll also be looking over their shoulder, with Bayer Leverkusen in hot pursuit of a Champions League spot.
They travel to a Frankfurt side who are usually strong at home, but with no fans to offer their support, that advantage is much less significant now.
Our traders have the visitors as 11/8 favourites. Eintracht are at 19/10, while there’s 13/5 about the draw.
The reverse fixture between these sides ended in a high-scoring 4-2 win for Gladbach. Over 3.5 Goals is available for 33/20, while 29/10 says Gladbach win and BTTS.
Alassane Plea and Bas Dost both head the First Goalscorer market at 5/1 each, with Andre Silva also 6/1 to open the scoring for the home side.
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (Sunday, 17:00)
Bayern Munich have gone from strength to strength under Hans Flick, will they pick up where they left off? They’re 6/4 to go unbeaten for the rest of the campaign and 1/5 to retain the title.
The odds are clearly in their favour, with the league leaders at 1/5 to get the win. Union Berlin are currently 11th in their first Bundesliga season. They’re huge 16/1 outsiders here.
Bayern are 20/23 to win to nil, or 7/5 with a +2 Handicap.
Robert Lewandowski is 9/5 to open the scoring, or 2/5 to net anytime. Thomas Muller is also 8/5 to score during the 90 minutes, having looked back to his best under Flick.
If the underdogs are going to pull off a historic upset, they’ll likely need a good game from Sebastian Andersson. The Swedish forward is 3/1 to add to his 11-goal tally.
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication
