Bundesliga: Title-Chasing BVB Can Pass the Augsburg Test

Augsburg vs Borussia Dortmund 

All eyes will be on the game between Augsburg and Borussia Dortmund at the WWK Arena on Sunday, as BVB continue their quest to win a first Bundesliga title in 11 years. 

FC Bayern are a point ahead, but the champions face third-placed Red Bull Leipzig on Saturday, and that could be the pivotal match over the last two rounds.

Either way, it looks like the title race is going to the last game of the season and then Dortmund arguably have the easier passage, at home to Mainz while Bayern travel to Cologne.       

13^th placed Augsburg are almost safe, four points above the drop zone and with TSG Hoffenheim and VfL Bochum cushioning them from the bottom three.

In fact, if you really fear for Augsburg, then you can get a SBOTOP price of 101.00 on them dropping through the trapdoor. So Borussia fans will hope their opponents are subconsciously planning for the close season. 

The hosts come into the game on the back of a 3-2 defeat to Bochum, which would have been a disaster had they been in deeper trouble, while Dortmund slapped Borussia Monchengladbach 5-2, and the visitors will be in the mood for more of the same.

Talking Points

Dortmund hit top form at the right time

Edin Terzic has done a fine job at the helm at the Signal Iduna Park and his team has shown the best form in the league since the turn of the year and, over the past two weeks, they have been simply sensational.

Monchengladbach could have presented a serious challenge to BVB last week, but two goals from Sebastien Haller, and one each from Gio Reyna, Donyell Malen, and Jude Bellingham gave them a 5-2 victory. Haller has scored seven times since his return from cancer treatment and his re-emergence has been a welcome sight for football fans worldwide.  

Dortmund had no problem taming the Wolves of Wolfsburg in their previous game, this time scoring six unanswered goals as Karim Adeyemi bagged a brace and Terzic, with no new injuries, has plenty of choice in terms of attacking players.

Bellingham has been a dominant figure just behind the front line, while Reyna has been pushing for a start having put in a series of eye-catching performances from the bench.

He hasn’t started a game since February but Reyna has still provided BVB Bundesliga 2023 highlights since the turn of the year. 

The only concern for Die Schwarzgelben is their away form. While BVB are unbeaten in six matches in all competitions, they haven’t won away in six games and now is the time to put that right.  

Don’t take Augsburg lightly

They may be almost safe and succumbed to lowly Bochum last week, but Augsburg can be a dangerous customer as high-flying Union Berlin will testify.

Augsburg beat the Champions League chasers in their last home game, as Dion Beljo scored early in the second half. Head coach Enrico Maassen will have his team well-organised to face the big scoring Dortmunders, but he too has some more than useful attacking stars.

Mergim Berisha, with nine goals, and Ermedin Demirovic with eight will lead the hosts’ attack and there could be a role too for Ghanaian striker Kelvin Yeboah.

The 23-year-old climbed off the bench against Bochum and scored his first Bundesliga goal for Augsburg in the 3-2 loss. He’s a lively customer and will surely make an appearance in the hosts are chasing the game. 

History

Die Schwarzgelben have dominated the head-to-heads, winning 15 of the last 24 meetings, drawing six, and losing just three.

When the two teams met in January, BVB came out on top of a seven-goal thriller, as Gio Reyna scored the winner with a brilliant volley after the hosts had been pegged back three times.

Dortmund’s young stars were on fire in that game as Bellingham and fellow teenager Jamie Bynoe-Gittens were both on target while Haller made his comeback appearance.

At that point, Terzic’s team were seven points behind Bayern.

In terms of recent form, BVB are much stronger than their hosts with four wins and two draws from the last six games, while Augsburg have won one, drawn two, and lost three in that time.  

Betting Tip

If you fancy an upset, you can get odds of 5.80 on a home win or 4.74 on a draw, while the Bundesliga 2023 betting odds price an away win at 1.35.

I can’t see anything other than a comfortable win for BVB who will have the added advantage of knowing how Bayern faired in their crunch match at home to Red Bull.

That could be quite a motivator.

 

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