Bundesliga preview: Who’ll come out on top in crucial title clash?
Bundesliga preview: Who’ll come out on top in crucial title clash?
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Borussia Dortmund v Bayern Munich headlines the midweek matches
This week could be the most important of the season in terms of deciding the title, as the top two meet – with just four points separating them.
As well as Borussia Dortmund v Bayern Munich, we’ve taken a look at the other key midweek fixtures. Two teams battling for European football go head-to–head, while at the other end of the table, one side in particular could be eyeing a significant scalp to boost their chances of survival.
With just seven games left to play, tonight’s match between the top two represents Dortmund’s biggest opportunity to close the gap on Bayern and prevent them from claiming the title for the eighth consecutive time.
Victory would find Dortmund just one point behind the Bavarian giants, who still need to face the teams currently in fourth, fifth and sixth in the league.
Both sides have won both of their matches since the hiatus, with Bayern dominating Eintracht Frankfurt in a 5-2 win on Saturday.
Clinical finishing carried Dortmund to a 2-0 victory against Wolfsburg on the weekend, scoring with their only two shots on target.
While Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho might earn more headlines these days, Robert Lewandowski remains the league’s most potent goalscorer with 27 league goals so far this season. He’s 13/5 to open the scoring, or 8/13 to find the net anytime.
Bayer Leverkusen have managed to continue their excellent 2020 form despite the disruption, with two victories since the league’s return – including an impressive 3-1 win away to Borussia Monchengladbach at the weekend. That makes it six wins in their last seven and they currently find themselves fourth in the standings.
With reported Liverpool target Kai Havertz scoring for Leverkusen four times in his last two games, he can be found at 7/2 to open the scoring or 23/20 to score anytime.
Wolfsburg will be disappointed with their 2-0 capitulation to Dortmund on Saturday, with Felix Klaus‘ 82nd-minute red card ending any hope of a comeback.
While they’re sixth in the league, there’s now a huge 13-point gap between them and fifth-placed Monchengladbach. But, with both Schalke and Freiburg faltering since the league’s return, they’ll be desperate to hold onto sixth and a Europa League spot.
Leverkusen are 8/11 to win, with the draw at 14/5 and Wolfsburg at 17/5 to take all three points.
In stark contrast to some of the teams mentioned above, Schalke have been poor since the league’s return, losing to both Dortmund and Augsburg and falling to eighth in the table. 16th-placed Dusseldorf may see their Wednesday night encounter as an excellent opportunity to extend the gap between them and Werder Bremen, who sit in 17th.
Having said that, a draw might be the more likely outcome – Dusseldorf have looked like draw specialists in 2020 with six of their ten games ending in stalemate. They’ll be looking to 11-goal striker Rouwen Hennings to provide their firepower.he can be backed at 7/2 to open the scoring, or 7/5 to find the net anytime.
Dusseldorf are priced at 8/5 to win, with the draw at 11/5 and a Schalke victory at 13/8.
