Two of the biggest clubs in Germany are set to go head-to-head on Saturday when Hoffenheim hosts Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga. Both teams finished in the top four last season and this clash looks set to be the match of the weekend, with the two sides harboring genuine hopes of offering a title challenge to reigning champion Bayern Munich over the coming months.
- Hoffenheim is without a win in its last two matches in all competitions.
- Borussia Dortmund has won four of its last five games across all competitions.
- Borussia Dortmund has won 10 of the past 22 matches between these two teams.
Hoffenheim vs Borussia Dortmund Game Center
Hoffenheim looking to bounce back
Hoffenheim managed an impressive third-place finish last season, but things are not quite going according to plan in the Sportsbook weeks of the new campaign. They have lost two of their Sportsbook three league encounters, and this past week were held 2-2 away to Shakhtar Donetsk in their UEFA Champions League curtain raiser.
Borussia, by way of comparison, has made an encouraging start to the new season after only managing to finish fourth last term. Under the stewardship of Lucien Favre, they remain unbeaten and sit just two points behind table toppers Bayern Munich. In addition, they made a winning start to their Champions League adventure, recording a 1-0 win away to Club Brugge in midweek.
The betting is very close in this one, between two evenly matched teams. Hoffenheim comes in at +175 to pick up the three points in front of their own fans, while visiting Dortmund is a very slight favorite at +140 to make it three wins out of four at the start of the new Bundesliga season. A draw looks to be the least likely result and is priced accordingly at +250.
Dortmund must put sustained pressure on Bayern
While Bayern may be the favorite to defend its league title, the most stringent challenge is sure to come from Borussia Dortmund. Lucien Favre’s side is at +1200 to wrest the crown from Bayern’s grasp and, put simply, this is the kind of difficult game they must be winning if they want to be seen as genuine title contenders.
Of course, it is not easy predicting scorelines of games but we are expecting goals between two teams who like to play on the front foot. A 2-1 win for Dortmund is priced competitively at +900.
The odds are short on OVER 2.5 goals in the game (-211) and both teams to score, which comes in at -225. There is sure to be some entertainment for those in attendance, as the match will be played with the throttle off.
Dortmund hit three past Eintracht in their last league game as well as thumping RB Leipzig 4-1 on the Sportsbook day. We also like the chances of Borussia scoring in both halves, an outcome which is priced at +175.
Dortmund has edge in this encounter
It is also worth pointing out that, in the recent head-to-head record between these two teams, it is Borussia Dortmund that boasts the slightly better record. Borussia has won 10 of the 22 games, with Hoffenheim managing just five victories and seven of the matches ending in a stalemate.
In this fixture last season, Hoffenheim prevailed 3-1, but we are expecting a very different outcome this time around. Lucien Favre has added some steel to the Dortmund defence, and with Christian Pulisic pulling the strings in the middle and new arrival Paco Alcácer up front, they are looking dangerous to say the least.
Alcácer was on the scoresheet in that 3-1 win over Eintracht and we expect to see the 24-year-old in amongst the goals again. The Spanish striker is priced at +137 to net at any time during the game, while you can back him at +550 to score either the first or the last goal of the game.
Dortmund has something to prove after a lackluster showing in the last campaign which saw them get nowhere near a league title challenge. They have started in encouraging fashion this time around – it is up to Favre to maintain that crucial early momentum.
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