Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

[Aidymac]

[TABLE=class: couponTable, width: 617] [TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Friday 21 February 2014[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Draw[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]FC Schalke 04 v 1. FSV Mainz 05 (19:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.74[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]4[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]5.4[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]100.97 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Saturday 22 February 2014[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Draw[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]1. FC Nürnberg v Eintracht Braunschweig (14:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.72[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]4[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]5.7[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]100.44 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Borussia Mönchengladbach v 1899 Hoffenheim (14:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.92[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.95[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]4.15[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]101.50 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Hamburger SV v Borussia Dortmund (14:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]9.1[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]5.7[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.37[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]101.14 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]SC Freiburg v FC Augsburg (14:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.45[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.4[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.38[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]100.41 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]VfB Stuttgart v Hertha BSC (14:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.65[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.5[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.92[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]100.55 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]VfL Wolfsburg v Bayer 04 Leverkusen (17:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.7[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3.4[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2.85[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]101.54 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Sunday 23 February 2014[/TH] [TH]Home[/TH] [TH]Draw[/TH] [TH]Away[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Eintracht Frankfurt v Werder Bremen (14:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.74[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]4[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]5.5[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]100.63 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Hannover 96 v FC Bayern München (16:30 GMT)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]15[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]7.7[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1.26[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]98.60 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

[TotoSchillaci]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Hamburg v Dortmund LLLLL plays at home to WWWWW - that's form in all comps both home and away. Hamburg got slaughtered 0-5 vs Bayern in the cup last week which I suspected as they had their big relegation battle game vs BOTTOM team Braunschweiger coming up at the weekend and would have only concentrated on that. However they managed to lose that 4-2 away to the cellar boys and now sit just a point above them in 2nd last. A draw ain't gonna do much for Hamburg so the crowd will push them forward against one of the best counter attacks in Europe who are back on form and coming for 3 points. They have a new coach now which may be a factor. -1 AH is 1.55 and -1.5 is 2.05 so I'm weighing those up between safety and value.

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

Hamburg v Dortmund LLLLL plays at home to WWWWW - that's form in all comps both home and away. Hamburg got slaughtered 0-5 vs Bayern in the cup last week which I suspected as they had their big relegation battle game vs BOTTOM team Braunschweiger coming up at the weekend and would have only concentrated on that. However they managed to lose that 4-2 away to the cellar boys and now sit just a point above them in 2nd last. A draw ain't gonna do much for Hamburg so the crowd will push them forward against one of the best counter attacks in Europe who are back on form and coming for 3 points. They have a new coach now which may be a factor. -1 AH is 1.55 and -1.5 is 2.05 so I'm weighing those up between safety and value.

The only thing speaking for Hamburg is that they have hired Slomka as their new coach and he is very good. But quality is low. van der Vaart is out for 3 weeks now although he was poor for weeks.

[HastGill1]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

The only thing speaking for Hamburg is that they have hired Slomka as their new coach and he is very good. But quality is low. van der Vaart is out for 3 weeks now although he was poor for weeks.

Is the new coach defensive or offensive generally? Against Bayern they were very defensive at home but that was with the old coach who was obviously on his last legs. I see Reus and Hummels are now back in training and should be available for the game which is a bonus. Another consideration is obviously that Dortmund have a CL game midweek away at Zenit on the Tuesday which could come into conflict with playing them on a -1.5 handicap. I haven't really watched Dortmund much this season, have they been playing better since the winter break?

[TotoSchillaci]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd True. I'm counting on the notion that these teams like to send messages before they meet in Europe. Barca 6-0, PSG 3-0 etc. There's certainly been an upturn in form but honestly I haven't seen them lately. Don't think Zenit scares them much.

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

Is the new coach defensive or offensive generally? Against Bayern they were very defensive at home but that was with the old coach who was obviously on his last legs. I see Reus and Hummels are now back in training and should be available for the game which is a bonus. Another consideration is obviously that Dortmund have a CL game midweek away at Zenit on the Tuesday which could come into conflict with playing them on a -1.5 handicap. I haven't really watched Dortmund much this season, have they been playing better since the winter break?

The last 2 league matches Dortmund were really strong and outscored their opponents and both times they could have won even higher. I doubt they rest anyone for this match against Hamburg as they know it could be dangerous against a team who has a new coach. Their matches before that weren't great (2-2 against Augsburg, 2-1 against Braunschweig). Still they seem to find their form back. The last years they had problems to win agaisnt Hamburg away and they lost last season 2-3 away in Hamburg being similar favourites like this time. The new coach for Hamburg is Slomka. He was Hannover's coach for the last 3,5 years or so before he was sacked in December. They condeded many goals and he never seemed like to be able to improve their defence. They caused big defensive errors in almsot every match so I can hardly see him improving Hamburg that quickly. Under normal circumstances, Dortmund would trash them. Also keeper Adler produced 2 big mistakes against Braunschweig and they all looked very poor.

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Hummels probably being out know as he felt some pain in his leg and didn't train in the afternoon.

[TotoSchillaci]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Taken from http://gulftoday.ae/portal/7a519401-aba8-408d-8f83-73bbcc690547.aspx "New coach Mirko Slomka has nearly doubled the weekly quota of training sessions for relegation-threatened Hamburg in a bid to prevent their first relegation from Germany’s top-flight." "Sacked by Hanover 96 in December, Slomka has raised Hamburg’s training sessions from four to seven per week and has said that, unlike Van Marwijk, he will be living in Hamburg with his family based in Hanover." Here's hoping for burnout :hope

[TotoSchillaci]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Damning article on Hamburgs defensive issues http://www.whoscored.com/Articles/oxaxt4rtueamq9xid0kmla/Show/Team-Focus-Slomka-Must-Restore-Defensive-Stability-to-Save-Hamburg

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

The last 2 league matches Dortmund were really strong and outscored their opponents and both times they could have won even higher. I doubt they rest anyone for this match against Hamburg as they know it could be dangerous against a team who has a new coach. Their matches before that weren't great (2-2 against Augsburg, 2-1 against Braunschweig). Still they seem to find their form back. The last years they had problems to win agaisnt Hamburg away and they lost last season 2-3 away in Hamburg being similar favourites like this time. The new coach for Hamburg is Slomka. He was Hannover's coach for the last 3,5 years or so before he was sacked in December. They condeded many goals and he never seemed like to be able to improve their defence. They caused big defensive errors in almsot every match so I can hardly see him improving Hamburg that quickly. Under normal circumstances, Dortmund would trash them. Also keeper Adler produced 2 big mistakes against Braunschweig and they all looked very poor.

Seems like Hummels could miss this one. Also Hamburg will miss Ilicevic now as he was injured in training. Van der Vaart is already out plus long-term injured Beister. Their offense is really much weakened and they only have striker Lasogga and offensive midfielder Calhanoglu who was out of form recently. A very defensive minded line-up from Hamburg is quite realistic with 3 defensive midfielders in front of the defence. Upfront they will start Lasogga, that's for sure. THey could go with either 2 offensive players behind him or with one one each side plus one behind Lasogga but as their replacements aren't great (Calhanoglu out of form, John has shown nothing since he arrived on loan from Benfica and Zoua being no good at all-even at Basle where he was before he was no key player). So I expect them to play with a 4-3-2-1 or they do have to play players out of position in the offensive midfield or play out of form players which could end really bad against Dortmund who show a better form. Only thing speaking for Hamburg is the new manager effect.

[andypaps28]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd [h=1]Source : William Hill OPTA stats Bundesliga Opta Facts | 21-23 Feb[/h] FC Schalke 04 v 1. FSV Mainz 05

• The Royal Blues have won nine of their 15 Bundesliga games against Mainz (D3 L3), as well as five of the seven meetings at home (D1 L1).
• However, the home side has won just one of the last nine competitive meetings between these two clubs. Three of those games have ended in draws, with the visitors victorious on five occasions.
• Alongside Bayern, Schalke are the only other Bundesliga side yet to drop a point in 2014, winning all four of their games. The last time they won their first five games after the winter break was in 2001/02.
• In the previous six seasons in which Schalke have had at least 40 points after 21 games (currently 40), they have gone on to finish in the top three.
• Mainz have won four of their last five Bundesliga games, only losing in their most recent away trip (3-0 in Wolfsburg).
• The only time FSV have had more points after 21 games than they do at the moment (33) was in 2010/11 (37). They ended that season in fifth and qualified for the Europa League.
• Jens Keller's side have won all five of their Bundesliga home games since a 3-1 loss to Dortmund at the end of October. The last time they put a longer run together was between November 2009 and March 2010, when they won eight successive home games.
• Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored the winning goal in Schalke's 2-1 victory against Leverkusen, netting his fourth goal of the season in his sixth appearance. The Dutchman has needed just 14 shots for his four goals.
• With nine goals scored by substitutes, Mainz share the top spot with Bayern in this regard. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting is the most prolific player off the bench this season, having scored five times.
• Kevin-Prince Boateng scored his first goal for Schalke in the meeting with Mainz earlier this season in what was his second Bundesliga appearance for the Royal Blues. It ensured a 1-0 win for the visitors.
• Jens Keller's competitive debut as Schalke manager was a German Cup last-16 clash with Mainz in December 2012. FSV won the game 2-1 in the Veltins Arena

Borussia Monchengladbach v Hoffenheim

• Gladbach have won just two of their 14 competitive matches against Hoffenheim and have lost eight of them (four draws). TSG won the meeting earlier this season 2-1.
• Hoffenheim have collected seven points from their last three games, their best run since the summer (eight points from four games including last season). However, TSG are yet to secure back-to-back wins under Markus Gisdol (something they last did in September 2012).
• Gladbach are without a win in six games (D3 L3) - a run that has never happened under Favre previously. This last happened between September and November 2010 (a run of nine winless games).
• With 44 goals scored, Hoffenheim have the third-best attack, although they also have the fourth-worst defence with 44 goals conceded. The last time that there were 88 goals scored in 21 games (an average of 4.2 per game) involving a particular side was 27 years ago (Fortuna Düsseldorf's games provided 89 goals).
• TSG have conceded at least once in each of their last 15 Bundesliga away games (a club record). Their last clean sheet on the road was a 3-0 win in Fürth (March 2013).
• Hoffenheim have conceded 299 goals in the top flight. If Gladbach score in this game, it would mark a unwanted milestone for TSG.
• TSG's Roberto Firmino has been involved in 18 goals only second to Lewandowski in the league (20). He has scored 10 goals and provided eight assists (joint-league best). Firmino was only involved in seven goals in the whole of last season.
• Gladbach's Max Kruse has yet to score or register an assist in 2014 and has only found the net once in his last 10 Bundesliga games (from the penalty spot).
• Having won 69.7% of his challenges, TSG's David Abraham is the Bundesliga's best tackler.
• Hoffenheim's Eugen Polanski is suspended for the match against his former club after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season.

VfB Stuttgart v Hertha Berlin

• Stuttgart have won 16 of their 28 Bundesliga home games against Hertha, suffering only four defeats (eight draws).
• VfB have won four of the last six meetings between the sides, including the last two (D1, L1). Stuttgart have kept a clean sheet in each of those four wins.
• Only in 1974/75 (relegated) and 2010/11 (survived) have VfB also had just 19 points after 21 games. They have never had fewer at this stage of the season. The only time they have conceded more goals than they have now (45) was in 1974/75 (46).
• Stuttgart have lost each of their last six matches. They are now just one defeat away from matching their club record (7 defeats in a row at the end of 1986/87).
• Alongside HSV, Stuttgart are one of just two sides yet to collect a point in 2014.
• VfB have only collected nine points from their 10 home games this season (the same as in 1966/67). They have never collected fewer points after 10 home matches.
• Stuttgart have conceded at least once in their last 14 matches. No other side has been waiting as long for a clean sheet.
• Hertha have won four of their last five Bundesliga away games - they have only dropped points in their 1-0 loss away to Eintracht Frankfurt on matchday 18 in that period.
• Fredi Bobic played for Hertha between 2003 and 2005 (54 Bundesliga games, eight goals), where he took over goalscoring duties from Michael Preetz, who ended his career in 2003.
• On average, VfB have conceded 2.17 goals per game under Thomas Schneider, the highest amount of all Stuttgart managers in Bundesliga history.
• A VfB player has been sent off in each of their last two games. Top scorer Ibisevic (10 goals), who saw red against Augsburg, is suspended until matchday 26, while Leitner picked up two yellow cards in last week's meeting with Hoffenheim and is out of the Hertha match too.
• Jos Luhukay has faced Stuttgart five times as a Bundesliga manager and has lost all five games. Against no other side has he suffered more top-flight defeats.

1. FC Nürnberg v Eintracht Braunschweig

• Nürnberg have won six of their 10 Bundesliga home games against Braunschweig (D2 L2). FCN beat Eintracht 1-0 at home during the 1973/74 Regionalliga play-off round, but were eventually beaten to Bundesliga promotion by the Lions.
• A win against Nürnberg could see Braunschweig move off the foot of the table for the first time since matchday 12. HSV would also have to fail to beat Dortmund for it to happen.
• With nine points to their name, Nürnberg sit fourth place in a table based on results from 2014. Only four sides have scored more goals than them so far this year (Bayern and Dortmund with 13, Schalke and Augsburg with 9). Their tally of three goals conceded is bettered by just two teams (Bayern with 0 and Schalke with 2).
• Five of Eintracht's last six goals have come from set-pieces, including three of the four they scored against HSV (one corner, two free kicks). Braunschweig scored just one set-piece goal in their first 16 games of the season.
• Josip Drmic has scored 11 of FCN's 25 goals this season, including each of the last three. That is the highest percentage (44%) of goals scored for any club by a single player.
• Nürnberg have picked up points in eight of the nine league games that Drmic has scored in (W3 D5) - in fact, they have won the last three games he has scored in. The only exception is their 3-1 loss to Gladbach in November.
• In the game against HSV, Domi Kumbela became the seventh Bundesliga player in history to score a hat-trick after coming off the bench - Kumbela was brought on at half time.
• Kumbela has scored in three Bundesliga games this season (five goals in total) - Braunschweig have won all three of those matches.
• Nürnberg have collected 10 points in five games with Javier Pinola at centre back, conceding just three goals (including two against Bayern) and keeping three clean sheets. Including last season, FCN had gone 24 league games without a clean sheet before those five matches.

SC Freiburg v FC Augsburg

• Augsburg have lost all eight of their competitive away matches against SC Freiburg, even failing to score a single goal against them.
• Augsburg have claimed just two wins and have suffered 10 defeats in 17 league games (Bundesliga, 2. Bundesliga and Second Division South) against Freiburg (five draws).
• With 31 points to their name, Augsburg are having their best ever Bundesliga season and are just three points off a European place. A win against SCF would see FCA overtake their points haul from last season (33) already.
• Freiburg haven't lost any of their last three home games. They have won twice and recently drew against Hoffenheim (1-1).
• However, SCF have been waiting three games for a win (D1 L2).
• FCA haven't lost any of their last five away games (W2 D3), the longest unbeaten away run in Augsburg's Bundesliga history.
• If Augsburg score against Freiburg, it would be the club's 100th Bundesliga goal (99 so far).
• No side has allowed more shots on target than Freiburg this season (142).
• Streich's team have conceded 40 goals in their 21 league games so far. That is exactly twice as many as they conceded in their first 21 Bundesliga games last season (20).
• FCA have collected 31 points from 21 games - exactly the same amount Freiburg had at the same stage last season. SCF only missed out on a Champions League qualifying spot on the final matchday of the campaign, finally finishing fifth.
• Mike Hanke could equal a Bundesliga record in the match against Augsburg. Only former Bayern player Mehmet Scholl (123) has made more substitute appearances than him (122).

Hamburger SV v Borussia Dortmund

• Dortmund have lost in five of their last seven trips to Hamburg (W1 D1).
• HSV have lost their last eight competitive matches - their last Bundesliga win was at the end of November against Hannover (3-1), who at the time were being managed by Mirko Slomka.
• Hamburg have never conceded as many goals after 21 matches as they have currently (51). Dortmund, on the other hand, have scored 51 goals - the last time they scored as many after 21 games was in the debut Bundesliga season in 1963/64 (57).
• Never before in 51 years of the Bundesliga have Hamburger SV had so few points after 21 matchdays than they currently do (16).
• HSV are bottom of the home table with just seven points collected in their own stadium. The league's weakest home side has been relegated in each of the last 15 seasons. The last team to defy that statistic was Hamburg themselves back in 1997/98.
• Goalkeeper Rene Adler gifted two goals in HSV's 4-2 defeat to Braunschweig. Adler is the worst player in the league in this regard, making four mistakes that have led to goals.
• Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored five times in his last four competitive matches. He has scored the opening goal on six occasions this season - a league high together with Adrian Ramos.
• Mirko Slomka is the new HSV manager. He took over at his former side Hannover on matchday 19 of the 2009/10 season with the club in 16th place and, despite starting with six defeats (joint Bundesliga record), achieved Bundesliga survival.
• This is Jürgen Klopp's 12th meeting with HSV since he took over at Dortmund in the summer of 2008. Mirko Slomka will be the sixth different Hamburg manager he will have faced.
• Klopp celebrated his 111th Bundesliga win with BVB last weekend, matching the club record held by Ottmar Hitzfeld.

VfL Wolfsburg v Bayer 04 Leverkusen

• Wolfsburg have lost 17 of their 33 Bundesliga games against Leverkusen (W11 D5) - only against FC Bayern (25) have the Wolves suffered more defeats.
• None of the 33 Bundesliga meetings between Wolfsburg and Leverkusen have ended goalless (on average, 3.2 goals have been scored per game) - VfL lost the match earlier this season 3-1.
• Bayer 04 have scored at least once in their last 22 top-flight matches with Wolfsburg - against no other current Bundesliga side do they currently have a longer goalscoring run.
• Wolfsburg have now secured three consecutive wins in competitive matches (Bundesliga: 3-0 against Mainz, 2-1 in Berlin; German Cup quarterfinal: 3-2 against Hoffenheim). VfL have only achieved their current tally of 36 points after 21 games once before - during their title-winning 2008/09 campaign.
• Bayer 04 could celebrate a milestone in the match against Wolfsburg: Leverkusen have won 499 times in 1,181 top-flight games thus far.
• VfL have already won more games this season (11) than they did in the whole of the last campaign (10).
• No other side has collected more points from losing positions than Wolfsburg (14) - they won 2-1 in Berlin on the last matchday despite trailing 1-0. VfL were league leaders in this regard last season too, claiming 15 points after going behind.
• Wolfsburg put out the youngest starting XI in their Bundesliga history on the last matchday, with an average age of 24 years and 242 days.
• This is a meeting of the league's two best tackling sides: the Wolves have won 53.4% of their challenges, Leverkusen 52.1%
• Julian Brandt made his Bundesliga debut on the last matchday - the 17-year-old talent moved to Leverkusen from Wolfsburg during the winter break.
• Stefan Kießling has scored 11 goals in 17 Bundesliga meetings with Wolfsburg - only against Stuttgart has he scored more (14). The striker was the match winner with his brace in Bayer 04's 3-1 victory over VfL earlier this season (making it 2-1 and then 3-1).

Eintracht Frankfurt v Werder Bremen

• Frankfurt have celebrated 31 wins against Bremen - a record number for Eintracht in the Bundesliga. However, they have also lost 38 times (18 draws).
• Eintracht are unbeaten in their last seven Bundesliga meetings with Werder (W4, D3). It's the longest run the Eagles have ever had against Bremen in the Bundesliga without losing.
• With five wins, six draws and 10 defeats each (21 points), only goal difference separates Frankfurt (12th) and Bremen (13th) in the table: Eintracht (-14) have the fifth worst in the league, while Bremen's (-21) is the second worst.
• Bremen have won just one of their last 10 games, collecting just six points in that timeframe (D3 L6). A table based on just the last 10 matchdays would see them sitting 17th above only HSV.
• Frankfurt have won their last two home games without conceding, something they last did at the end of 2008. Eintracht last won three consecutive Bundesliga home games without conceding a single goal back in 2000.
• Bremen have the worst pass accuracy (71.6%) and average possession (42.5%) in the league. They have only found a teammate with 61.2% of their passes in the opponents' half (also a league low).
• Bottom of the table Braunschweig are the only side other than Werder that have also been waiting six Bundesliga away games for a win. Bremen's last victory on the road was a 2-0 win at HSV on matchday 6.
• Veh's side have claimed just two points from losing positions in this campaign, a league low. They came back to claim 13 points last season - second place behind Wolfsburg.
• During spells with Rostock, Stuttgart, Wolfsburg, Hamburg and Frankfurt, Armin Veh has faced Werder 14 times in the top flight, winning eight of those games (D3 L3). There have been a remarkable 60 goals in those games, an average of 4.3 goals per match.
• Frankfurt's Alex Meier could make his 200th Bundesliga appearance. Only five Eintracht players have scored more top-flight goals for the Eagles than Meier (53 in 193 games).

Hannover 96 v FC Bayern München

• This is the 50th Bundesliga meeting between FC Bayern München and Hannover 96. The current champions have won 32 of the matches so far (D8 L9).
• Hannover have lost their last four Bundesliga matches against Bayern with a goal record of two scored with 15 conceded - 96 have never suffered five consecutive Bundesliga defeats against FCB before. Their current run against Bayern in competitive games is already five successive losses.
• Nevertheless, Bayern have lost two of their last three away games in Hannover - FCB don't have a run like that against any other Bundesliga side at the moment. However, the last game in Hannover ended in a 6-1 win for Bayern (April 2013).
• Only FC Bayern (0) have suffered fewer home defeats than Hannover (1). 96 lost 4-1 to Hoffenheim back in October.
• Bayern have won their last 13 Bundesliga games and are heading for another record: FCB themselves secured 15 consecutive wins in 2005.
• FCB have already allowed 51 shots since the winter break (in 5 games) - eight teams have allowed fewer. Hannover have allowed the most shots in that timeframe (71).
• Mario Mandzukic and Mario Götze are both set for their 100th Bundesliga appearances, while Dante could make his 50th top-flight appearance in Bayern colours.
• Arjen Robben scored the first of his so far three Bundesliga hat-tricks in a match against Hannover back in April 2010 - FCB were 7-0 winners in the Allianz Arena.
• The two managers Pep Guardiola and Tayfun Korkut were on opposing sides as players almost exactly 13 years ago - on February 25th 2001, Pep's FC Barcelona beat Korkut's Real Sociedad 3-0.
• Claudio Pizarro celebrated his 200th Bundesliga win in the match against Freiburg - that is the highest amount amongst current top-flight players. Schweinsteiger could also reach this milestone in the meeting with Hannover (currently on 199 wins).
• Mame Diouf has scored 23 of his 25 Bundesliga goals in home matches.

[Frazer]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Nurnberg-Braunschweig Bet: Nurnberg @ 1.66 (Pinnacle) (3/10) Even though the Bundesliga table doesn't say it there is a big quality differenc between these two teams. Nurnberg had a LOT of dumb games in the first half of the season in which they lost and draw a lot of games they should have won. The most remembering here is surely the 3-3 against Hannover in which they were up 3-0 until the 60th minute. But in the winter break Nurnberg improved by a lot. The coach was now able to actually teach the players for a longer time what kind of football he wants to play and he could change the system a little bit. The result were 3 out of 4 games after the winter break being won (4-0 against Hoffenheim, 3-1 against Hertha and a 1-0 against Augsburg). As well as a 0-2 against Bayern in which they showed also a really good performance. Against Braunschweig they will miss: Hasebe (Not ready for the squad yet),Balitsch ( not ready for the squad yet), Ginczeck (will miss most of the rest of the season) and Chandler (will miss most of the rest of the season). Hasebe and Balitsch have both been out of the squad for quite a while and so are not a very big factor considering the past results and gamestyle. Braunschweig on the other side is quality wise just not enough for the first league. After the winter break they had a 1-2 against Dortmund which could easily have been a 2-6, a 0-3 against Frankfurt in which they were absolutely without chance and a 4-2 win against Hamburg. In this game Braunschweig was mostly without any goal chance (Almost full first half), the 4 goals of Braunschweig were basically all presents by Hamburg. Two individual mistakes by Adler and two times Hamburg's defense with individual mistakes and a absolute 3rd league defensive tactic. In the match against Nurnberg they will also be without Oehrl, Korte, Drüppel, Bellarabi, Kruppke, Khelifi, Elabdellaoui and Davari. Especially the missings of Eabdllaoui, Bellarabi and Oehrl are big misses for Braunschweig. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Freiburg-Augsburg Bet: Augsburg -0.25 @ 2.08 (Pinnacle) (5/10) I'm not impressed by Freiburg at all. They had 4 wins out of 21 games this season and these were against Nürnberg, Braunschweig and at home agaisnt Hannover before the winter break as well as a 3-2 against Leverkusen after the winter break. The 3-2 against Leverkusen made me think that the team finally works but it also needs to be said that Leverkusen was very weak in this game against Freiburg as well as after the winter break in general. This 3-2 was followed a 0-2 against Mainz in which they were absoutely without any chance, a 1-1 against Hoffenheim in which they were the worse team and showed big problems when it comes to finishing attacks and a 0-4 against Bayern in which Bayern used their B team. All in all they didn't show any big will power or quality in these games that would make it likely that the team is better than pre winter break. Augsburg on the other side is playing a great season so far. I myself thought they just had a lucky run in the first half of the season but they played really good and also showed after the winter break that they can continue this kind of gamestyle. The result of this gamestyle are 1 defeat, 3 draws and 5 wins out of the last 9 games. After the winterbeak a 2-2 against Dortmund, 3-1 against Bremen, 4-1 against Stuttgart and 0-1 against Nurnberg. In the matches against Bremen and Stuttgart they were obviously the favorite but the important fact about the games is that Bremen was without any chance at all and Stuttgart only with a very little chance to get a point in that game. Augsburg will be without Mölders, Ekin, Bobadilla and first goalkeeper Hitz. However Hitz is already out for some games and Manniger does a great job in the goal, Mölders, Ekin and Bobadilla are not that important factors considering the last games.

[Frazer]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Stuttgart-Hertha Bet: Hertha AHC 0 @ 1.94 (Pinnacle) (7/10) Sick odds here. Stuttgart is really in very bad shape. 8 out of the last 9 games lost (all 4 after the winter break). In these games it got very clear that they have very big problems in the defense. Now in the offense they are missing Ibisevic until middle May, because of a red card. As Abdellaoue is not able to replace Ibisevic due to his individual class being one level worse they are also having big problems in offense. However their biggest problem in this match is the defensive middlefield. Genter won't be able to play as well as Leitner. So their normal double 6 is out of the game. They are replaced by two youngsters with Khedira and Yalcin. So all in all: Individual mistakes and problems in the defense, defensive middlefield replaced with two very young players without big experience and the offense without main striker Ibisevic who can not be replaced properly. Hertha on the other side started quite bad after the winter break as well. A 0-1 against Frankfurt (Hertha was the better team in this game, Frankfurt actually defended over 90 minutes), a 1-3 against Nürnberg (quite equal game),a 1-2 against Wolfsburg (Hertha was the slightly better team here, a draw would have been fair) and a 3-0 against Hamburg. Hertha played better in these matches than the results say and I'm pretty sure that against Stuttgart they will be able to bounce back, especially due to Stuttgart's double 6 missing the game. As Stuttgart is playing home they will have to make the game and this is absolutely what Hertha likes. Expecting fast attacks by Hertha which will be very effective against Stuttgart.

[scotty657]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Schalke enjoy taking the game to their opponents and they'll be set out to do just that against a tough Mainz side. Meyer, Draxler and Farfan will be providing Huntelaar at every opportunity, and the Dutchman is as adept at finding the net as he is assisting those around him. Mainz will generally try to sit in and hit Schalke on the break. The home side could be vulnerable to balls in the air, but it's unlikely Mainz will attempt that sort of play. Schalke should control and win the game, bagging another vital three points for a CL spot. Schalke 3/4 Bet365

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Wolfsburg-Leverkusen AH+0 @1.75 4/10 SBObet Wolfsburg hosting Leverkusen here who are in a bad form following defeats toK'lautern Schalke and Paris as they lost 3 matches in all competitions within just 1 week. They did perform badly in all of those matches and deserved to lose those matches. Morale is low and away from home they are far away from being as good as at home. Wolfsburg should be bigger favourites than this as they rate them almost level on with Leverkusen despite playing at home. They won their last 3 matches with 2 of them being league matches and play well in front of their on fans. Definitely value on them. Leverkusen missings Can through suspension and 17-year-old Brandt could play from the start instead of Son. Brandt just came from Wolfsburg's youth team in the winter transfer window. GL

[Frazer]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd LWolfsburg-everkusen Bet: Leverkusen + 0.25 @ 1.9 (Pinnacle) (6/10) The market completely overreacts here. It's absolutely true that Leverkusen had a LOT of luck in the first half of the season and won a lot of games they shouldn't have. And it's also true that they played quite bad after the winter break (2-3 against Freiburg; 0-1 against Lautern in the Cup and 0-4 against PSG). But people are just backing Wolfsburg because they have seen Leverkusen playing bad. They are not looking at Wolfsburg. Wolfsburg with a 1-2 against Schalke, 1-3 against Hannover, a 3-0 against Mainz, a 1-2 against Hertha and a 3-2 against Hoffenheim in the cup. In the games against Hannover and Hertha it got quite clear that they have problems against teams who are standing well in defense and have their concentration on it. Just attacking with mainly fast counter attacks. That's exactly what Hannover did, that's also what Hertha tried to do (even though Hertha had the control over the game mostly; Hertha was the better team here). For me this odds got way too extreme and the starting odds would have been way more realistic than this ones. So a good value bet for me. Injuries: Wolfsburg without long term injuried Pokal and Vierienha; Leverkusen without long term injuried Kruse and suspended Can

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Hamburg playing with Jiracek and Arslan in the offensive midfield, both out of position. Only 6 players on the bench with Bouy sitting there but being a bit sick.

[Frazer]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

Stuttgart-Hertha Bet: Hertha AHC 0 @ 1.94 (Pinnacle) (7/10) Sick odds here. Stuttgart is really in very bad shape. 8 out of the last 9 games lost (all 4 after the winter break). In these games it got very clear that they have very big problems in the defense. Now in the offense they are missing Ibisevic until middle May, because of a red card. As Abdellaoue is not able to replace Ibisevic due to his individual class being one level worse they are also having big problems in offense. However their biggest problem in this match is the defensive middlefield. Genter won't be able to play as well as Leitner. So their normal double 6 is out of the game. They are replaced by two youngsters with Khedira and Yalcin. So all in all: Individual mistakes and problems in the defense, defensive middlefield replaced with two very young players without big experience and the offense without main striker Ibisevic who can not be replaced properly. Hertha on the other side started quite bad after the winter break as well. A 0-1 against Frankfurt (Hertha was the better team in this game, Frankfurt actually defended over 90 minutes), a 1-3 against Nürnberg (quite equal game),a 1-2 against Wolfsburg (Hertha was the slightly better team here, a draw would have been fair) and a 3-0 against Hamburg. Hertha played better in these matches than the results say and I'm pretty sure that against Stuttgart they will be able to bounce back, especially due to Stuttgart's double 6 missing the game. As Stuttgart is playing home they will have to make the game and this is absolutely what Hertha likes. Expecting fast attacks by Hertha which will be very effective against Stuttgart.

Nurnberg-Braunschweig Bet: Nurnberg @ 1.66 (Pinnacle) (3/10) Even though the Bundesliga table doesn't say it there is a big quality differenc between these two teams. Nurnberg had a LOT of dumb games in the first half of the season in which they lost and draw a lot of games they should have won. The most remembering here is surely the 3-3 against Hannover in which they were up 3-0 until the 60th minute. But in the winter break Nurnberg improved by a lot. The coach was now able to actually teach the players for a longer time what kind of football he wants to play and he could change the system a little bit. The result were 3 out of 4 games after the winter break being won (4-0 against Hoffenheim, 3-1 against Hertha and a 1-0 against Augsburg). As well as a 0-2 against Bayern in which they showed also a really good performance. Against Braunschweig they will miss: Hasebe (Not ready for the squad yet),Balitsch ( not ready for the squad yet), Ginczeck (will miss most of the rest of the season) and Chandler (will miss most of the rest of the season). Hasebe and Balitsch have both been out of the squad for quite a while and so are not a very big factor considering the past results and gamestyle. Braunschweig on the other side is quality wise just not enough for the first league. After the winter break they had a 1-2 against Dortmund which could easily have been a 2-6, a 0-3 against Frankfurt in which they were absolutely without chance and a 4-2 win against Hamburg. In this game Braunschweig was mostly without any goal chance (Almost full first half), the 4 goals of Braunschweig were basically all presents by Hamburg. Two individual mistakes by Adler and two times Hamburg's defense with individual mistakes and a absolute 3rd league defensive tactic. In the match against Nurnberg they will also be without Oehrl, Korte, Drüppel, Bellarabi, Kruppke, Khelifi, Elabdellaoui and Davari. Especially the missings of Eabdllaoui, Bellarabi and Oehrl are big misses for Braunschweig. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Freiburg-Augsburg Bet: Augsburg -0.25 @ 2.08 (Pinnacle) (5/10) I'm not impressed by Freiburg at all. They had 4 wins out of 21 games this season and these were against Nürnberg, Braunschweig and at home agaisnt Hannover before the winter break as well as a 3-2 against Leverkusen after the winter break. The 3-2 against Leverkusen made me think that the team finally works but it also needs to be said that Leverkusen was very weak in this game against Freiburg as well as after the winter break in general. This 3-2 was followed a 0-2 against Mainz in which they were absoutely without any chance, a 1-1 against Hoffenheim in which they were the worse team and showed big problems when it comes to finishing attacks and a 0-4 against Bayern in which Bayern used their B team. All in all they didn't show any big will power or quality in these games that would make it likely that the team is better than pre winter break. Augsburg on the other side is playing a great season so far. I myself thought they just had a lucky run in the first half of the season but they played really good and also showed after the winter break that they can continue this kind of gamestyle. The result of this gamestyle are 1 defeat, 3 draws and 5 wins out of the last 9 games. After the winterbeak a 2-2 against Dortmund, 3-1 against Bremen, 4-1 against Stuttgart and 0-1 against Nurnberg. In the matches against Bremen and Stuttgart they were obviously the favorite but the important fact about the games is that Bremen was without any chance at all and Stuttgart only with a very little chance to get a point in that game. Augsburg will be without Mölders, Ekin, Bobadilla and first goalkeeper Hitz. However Hitz is already out for some games and Manniger does a great job in the goal, Mölders, Ekin and Bobadilla are not that important factors considering the last games.

Freiburg-Augsburg: 2-4; +5.4 EH Nürnberg-Braunschweig: 2-1 +2EH Stuttgart-Hertha: 1-2 +6.5 EH

[rocky1210]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd very nice Frazer

[NoFear]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Brilliant tipping Frazer. BRAVO!

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

Wolfsburg-Leverkusen AH+0 @1.75 4/10 SBObet Wolfsburg hosting Leverkusen here who are in a bad form following defeats toK'lautern Schalke and Paris as they lost 3 matches in all competitions within just 1 week. They did perform badly in all of those matches and deserved to lose those matches. Morale is low and away from home they are far away from being as good as at home. Wolfsburg should be bigger favourites than this as they rate them almost level on with Leverkusen despite playing at home. They won their last 3 matches with 2 of them being league matches and play well in front of their on fans. Definitely value on them. Leverkusen missings Can through suspension and 17-year-old Brandt could play from the start instead of Son. Brandt just came from Wolfsburg's youth team in the winter transfer window. GL

3:1 bet won

[Libuda]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Frankfurt -Bremen After the Hamburg win on saturday both teams are with 21 points only 2 points above relegation-spot. Both are coming in with a massive negative goal difference (Frankfurt -14, Bremen -21). Frankfurt at home is only 2-4-4, 14:14, Bremen away 2-2-6, 13:22). Frankfurt wins came against Braunschweig (3-0) back in September and a lucky win ag. Hertha (1:0) in January. Bremen won away at Braunschweig (1:0) and intheir Derby with HSV (2-0) beginning of the the season. The home team is coming back from a impressing 2:2 at Porto in EL, after being 0:2 down. Bremen took a lot of motivation with a late equalizer at home ag. MG. Overall Frankfurt gave away some points in 8 of 10 home games and Bremen took something in 4 of their 10 away games, besides their wns ag. Hoffenheim (4:4) and Stuttgart (1-1). Because Frankfurt is not the home power at all and Bremen can live very well with a point I predict a 1:1 draw. GL

[TotoSchillaci]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

Hamburg v Dortmund LLLLL plays at home to WWWWW - that's form in all comps both home and away. Hamburg got slaughtered 0-5 vs Bayern in the cup last week which I suspected as they had their big relegation battle game vs BOTTOM team Braunschweiger coming up at the weekend and would have only concentrated on that. However they managed to lose that 4-2 away to the cellar boys and now sit just a point above them in 2nd last. A draw ain't gonna do much for Hamburg so the crowd will push them forward against one of the best counter attacks in Europe who are back on form and coming for 3 points. They have a new coach now which may be a factor. -1 AH is 1.55 and -1.5 is 2.05 so I'm weighing those up between safety and value.

3-0 ...Ofcourse

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Hamburg outplayed them and Dortmund had no chance, even Klopp admitted that Hamburg really much deserved the win. Also huge free kick from Calhanoglu in the 90th minute.

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd Frankfurt-Bremen AH-0,5 @1,8 4/10 Pinnacle Frankfurt were playing quite well away at Porto on Thursday and came back from a 0-2 to get a draw and a good chance to advance. But their focus is on the league as they need points to get out of the relegation zone. Their squad is definitely good enough for that unlike Bremen's squad which is really poor. The quality is low and players also play really poor. Best player Hunt is out again. Frankfurt have the better squad but the only reason to be concerned about is the fact that they played on Thursday and might not be that fresh. Still I like to take them as the odds are good and they need to pick up more points at home. Bremen to lose. GL

[RedDevil92]

Re: Bundesliga > February 21st - 23rd

Frankfurt-Bremen AH-0' date=5 @1,8 4/10 Pinnacle Frankfurt were playing quite well away at Porto on Thursday and came back from a 0-2 to get a draw and a good chance to advance. But their focus is on the league as they need points to get out of the relegation zone. Their squad is definitely good enough for that unlike Bremen's squad which is really poor. The quality is low and players also play really poor. Best player Hunt is out again. Frankfurt have the better squad but the only reason to be concerned about is the fact that they played on Thursday and might not be that fresh. Still I like to take them as the odds are good and they need to pick up more points at home. Bremen to lose. GL

0:0 although being one man more from the 34th minute and hitting the post twice but still they weren't great