WE'RE delighted to welcome German Football expert Raphael Honigstein to the site for the new season thanks to our partner Unibet.
You may know Raph from his excellent work on BT Sport where he shares his knowledge of the European game and we're hoping he can make some of that know-how pay for us on MrFixitsTips. Best of luck Raphael!
Borussia Monchengladbach v Mainz (Sat 2.30pm)
Hoffenheim’s 22-game unbeaten home run in the Bundesliga was ended last Saturday by Gladbach, who came from a goal down to win 3-1.
“Unlike against Leverkusen, we didn’t panic after we conceded,” said defender Jannik Vestergaard, after Gladbach had shipped five second half goals the previous weekend.
Vincenzo Grifo played a starring role in this victory, with a mazy piece of dribbling allowing him to set up Matthias Ginter’s effort. Coach Dieter Hecking said that Grifo had impressively used his chance. It’s likely that he’ll keep his place in the side for the visit of Mainz.
Sandro Schwarz’s team have claimed just a point on their travels so far this season, with his side tottering around the lower part of the table.
That said, 20-year-old midfielder Suat Serdar came off the bench to rescue a point against Eintracht Frankfurt last Friday night, where they had looked flat for long spells.
Schwarz has talked about the possibility in the lead up to this game about going to Gladbach and trying to match their opponents.
That would be a risky tactic due to the amount of space that Mainz have generally left in behind when they have tried to be a bit more courageous in their approach this season.
There are certainly weaknesses to be exploited in Gladbach’s game as their 5-1 shellacking at the hands of Leverkusen in their last home game proved.
Yet overall, Gladbach’s Bundesliga form is in good shape having won four of their last six and you’d expect them to improve that tally here.
Raphael's Tips
- Correct score: Monchengladbach 3, Mainz 1 (11-1, Unibet)
- First scorer: Hazard (13-2, Unibet)
- Gladbach win (16-25, Unibet)
Leipzig v Hannover (Sat 2.30pm)
Much like most of his team-mates, Naby Keita was off the pace against Porto during the week as Leipzig lost 3-1 in Portugal. There was a bright spot in that Timo Werner scored his first European goal but the defending of Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side from set-pieces should give him cause for concern.
He might well be without forward Jean-Kevin Augustin this weekend after he picked up an ankle injury in the defeat. Leipzig will definitely be without captain Willi Orban after he was sent off 13 minutes in to their 2-0 defeat Bayern last weekend.
Hasenhüttl at least saw the funny side suggesting he should just prepare for Bayern games in future by playing 10 against 11 in training.
They’re likely to have another tough test when they play Hannover this weekend. André Breitenreiter’s side are just one spot below Leipzig in fourth and have very much been the surprise package of the Bundesliga season so far.
Breitenreiter deserves credit for his side’s tactical flexibility in recent weeks, with different set ups seeing them to back-to-wins against Augsburg and more impressively against Dortmund last weekend.
Leipzig need to be wary of Hannover’s ability to play quickly and accurately on the counter. As Ihlas Bebou proved against Dortmund, his pace can be a dangerous weapon whilst at the back, they’ve been aided by excellent performances from goalkeeper Philipp Tschauner too.
Whilst André Breitenreiter has said Leipzig have shown in the past few weeks that they can cope with competing on all fronts, his Hannover side are good enough to cause Leipzig a few problems on Saturday and it should result in an entertaining game.
Raphael's Tips
- Correct score: Leipzig 3, Hannover 2 (19-1, Unibet)
- First scorer: Poulsen (19-4, Unibet)
- Over 3.5 goals (6-4, Unibet)
Augsburg v Leverkusen (Sat 2.30pm)
Just as it looked like Augsburg might be sliding into the relegation picture, Manuel Baum’s side swept Werder Bremen away with consummate ease last weekend.
It represented a good response to their defeat to Hannover, where they had led with just 15 minutes to go.
Their 3-0 victory in the end did not do them justice. “It was a good sign that we created so many chances,” said full-back Philipp Max, who is the Bundesliga’s top provider so far this season with five assists.
Leverkusen coach Heiko Herrlich was also happy with his side’s derby win against Cologne last weekend.
It was by no means though their most assured display. As they have done in almost every game this season, chances were created but Leverkusen did present Cologne with a hatful of good opportunities on the counter.
As Cologne’s league position suggested, they were not and are not a side at present who can make the most of that. Augsburg’s performance at Werder on the other hand very much showed that they could be a team to do just that.
Argentinian striker Lucas Alario started on the bench against Cologne last time out but he made a big difference when he came on at half time. Expect him to start and to be amongst the goals in what should be a good game down in Bavaria.
Raphael's Tips
- Correct score: Augsburg 1, Leverkusen 2 (15-2, Unibet)
- First scorer: Alario (27-5, Unibet)
- Over 2.5 goals (3-5, Unibet)
Dortmund v Bayern Munich (Sat 5.30pm)
If you want to see the difference in confidence between Bayern and Dortmund at present, then their respective Champions League games this week were good indicators.
Bayern were below par on Tuesday away at Celtic, yet still came away with a win. Dortmund, meanwhile, didn’t play all that badly against APOEL Nicosia but when it came to taking their chances, they weren’t as ruthless as Bayern were in Glasgow.
That was a Bayern side too that didn’t have Robert Lewandowski, whilst Joshua Kimmich, Mats Hummels and Thiago Alcantara were all on the bench on Tuesday. All of them are likely to return and indeed strengthen Jupp Heynckes’ side in Dortmund.
The home side could do with top scorer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang finding some form with the Gabonese striker without a goal now in his last four games.
He’ll start again on Saturday though, with Marcel Schmelzer likely to replace Raphael Guerreiro, who was a bright spark for Dortmund on his first start since coming back from injury. Winger Andrey Yarmolenko should regain his place in the starting line-up once again too.
Dortmund have struggled to produce their best under Peter Bosz when they’ve played against top sides in the form of Spurs, Real Madrid and Leipzig. The Celtic game aside, Bayern have not really been tested since Jupp Heynckes’ return with Leipzig shooting themselves in the foot with a red card in each of their encounters against them. Still, Dortmund’s recent form suggests Bayern will outfox them on Saturday.
Raphael's Tips
- Correct score: Dortmund 1, Bayern 2 (8-1, Unibet)
- First scorer: Thiago (9-1, Unibet)
- Bayern win (21-20, Unibet)
Munich-born Raphael Honigstein writes about football for Germany’s biggest broadsheet, Süddeutsche Zeitung, the Guardian, ESPNFC and his tips appear here thanks to our football partner at MrFixitsTips, Unibet. They're making a big splash in the UK betting scene and if you join them today you can claim up to £30 in Welcome Bonuses when you deposit and place your first bet.
In December 2020 we sadly 
