betting
Matchday 18 - Planning ahead in 2012
By Joe, BettingExpert.com | Edited
Google+: Joe Bexpert
Happy scenes in 2011 from Mario Gotze could yet be repeated on Sunday when Dortmund visits Hamburg in the first Bundesliga game in 2012. However, it is Bayern who will play the first game in 2012 with a trip to Borussia Mochengladbach while third place, Schalke 04 hosts Stuttgart on Saturday.
Borussia Mochengladbach vs. FC Bayern Munchen
A match that can’t be missed, the first game in 2012, both teams have to come to terms that there is a championship title to fight for and the winter break is over. The fourth place Borussia Mochengladbach will have to all to do at home when they face Bayern. They are currently trailing the league leaders by four points but that can all change Friday evening. This winter break might not have been kind to Borussia Mochengladbach and most prominently with their top striker, Marco Reus, who has signed for Dortmund this summer, but what would be a setback is that their head coach Lucien Favre has ruled his side out of the championship running. This might just be physcological mind games Favre is playing but miracles do happen because if you look back to the first game of the season, guess what, Borussia Mochengladbach won 1-0 away at Bayern. Both Mike Hanke and Marco Reus should be part of the starting lineup.
Top spot Bayern are on cruise control knowing that their nearest rival is three points behind them. They can’t relax but they know if they beat Borussia Mochengladbach then they have certainly disposed another title contender, leaving both Dortmund and Schalke 04 as the forerunners. Bayern has their own problems, Breno criticizing his own team on Twitter, visa problems for Rafinha at the winter camp but still managed a 4-0 win over RW Erfurt, where Kross, Robben, Muller and Schweinsteiger all hitting the target. With their form at least on a good run, Bayern will be without Frenchmen Frank Ribery who is suspended but in comes Schweinsteiger in the midfield returning after his collarbone injury.
Verdict:
So early in 2012 and to pick up the three points here will be very vital to the championship race. A draw looks likely, a good fair result but Bayern could avenge their loss earlier in the season. A draw would be a good Friday outcome.
Obscure Stat - Over the last 6 Bundesliga seasons, when Bayern have played away to a home club positioned between 3rd and 5th on the table, they have won 5, drawn 5 and lost 5 in 15 matches played.
Schalke 04 vs. Vfb Stuttgart
Third in the Bundesliga, Schalke 04 is also playing catch up with the league leaders, Bayern, but they are only three points away from them. This Saturday Schalke 04 can once again take a step closer to the championship but Jermaine Jones will serve his eight week match ban for deliberately stamping on BMG Marco Reus. His contribution will be missed but on the other hand, Schalke 04 has acquired the services of Chinedu Obasi on loan until the end of the season, also Roman Neustadter who will join the club in the summer. The question is whether Schalke 04 can hold onto their star strikers, both Raul and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar who could be tempted to go switch clubs during the January transfer window. There is a title on offer, keeping the squad could just deliver that title at the end of the season.
Not far off in eighth place is Stuttgart with 22 points but they are 12 points adrift from Schalke 04, which makes things a no contest for them. Well, not quite, because looking back at the first game of the Bundesliga season, Stuttgart brushed Schalke 04 aside 3-0. All three players on target, Cacau, Martin Harnik and Shinji Okazaki will surely be in the starting line up. The run up to the second half of the season start, Stuttgart took Turkey as their training camp and that worked out well for them as they beat Pakhtakor Tashkent 4-0 last Friday. New skipper Serdar Tasci led his team to victory and he will be hoping for another on Saturday as he takes on the field at Schalke.
Verdict:
A home win looks very likely in this case and favourites may I add. It’s due to the fact they have one of the deadliest partnerships in the Bundesliga, the Raul-Huntelaar combo could just be the key to the three points.
Obscure Stat - Over the last 6 Bundesliga seasons, when a club that has won their last 3 home matches has played an away club that has lost their last 3 away matches, the away club has won 7 of 25 matches played for a win profitability of 20%.
Hamburg vs. Dortmund
Ahead of the first game of 2012, Hamburg were in action last weekend taking on Arminia Bielefeld and took away a positive outcome, a 1-0 win. This must give some kind of positive attitude within the squad before hosting the reigning champions, Dortmund on Sunday. Head coach Torsten Fink will be hoping that a bit of change to the squad’s morale and keep them away from the relegation battle. They are six points away from the bottom but only three points away from the relegation zone. It all can turn ugly if they were to lose on Sunday but that isn’t something new as they struggle in the first half of the season near the bottom of the Bundesliga. Hopefully the new year will give Hamburg the confidence to pick up points week in, week out.
Second place, Dortmund, must be raring to go as they have a title to defend. Head coach Jurgen Klopp knows match fitness for their first game in 2012 could give them the three points that they need to get level with the league leaders, Bayern. Dortmund took a trip to Spain for training camp and so a two game win over Standard Liege and Elche should be signs that Dortmund are finding themselves where they left off before the winter break kicked in. Winning should be the only thing in the players mind but some might be dealing with the transfer worries that both Zidan or Barrios are on their way out, well, as least until the summer as Dortmund have signed Marco Reus. However, goals have been limited in the first half of the season and if they want to go all the way with Bayern into spring, goals are what they need, starting against Hamburg.
Verdict:
Dortmund has prepared well for the start of the season and with much riding that they continue where they left off, Hamburg shouldn’t be a problem considering that they beat them on the first day of match play with 3-1 at home. This should be a win for the visitors.
Obscure Stat - Over the last 6 Bundesliga seasons, when Hamburg have hosted a club positioned between 1st and 3rd on the table, the match has been drawn in 5 of 11 matches played, going Under 2.5 goals in 8 of those 11 matches.
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20.01.2012, 01:33 CET
The verdicts are missing :P