Borussia Dortmund vs. FC Ingolstadt 04
3-Way: 1: Borussia Dortmund -323 Home; X: +550 Draw; 2: FC Ingolstadt 04 +1200 Away
Spread: Borussia Dortmund -1.5 -118; FC Ingolstadt +1.5 +119
Total 3+: Over -104; Under +102
Analysis and Prediction:
We kick-off the Bundesliga Round 25 with the first matchup of the round between the Borussia Dortmund who will host the FC Ingolstadt at the Signal Iduna Park on Friday afternoon. These two teams have couple of things in common with one being the 3 draws at home and the other being the 20 goals received away. Anything besides these two facts is totally different. Dortmund is currently ranked third while the Die Schanzer are ranked 2nd from the bottom. With that being said, the home side will fight for points that can help them reach the Champions league next season, while the away team is trying to dig themselves out of the relegation zone.
Borussia Dortmund will try to bounce back to winning track after suffering a somewhat unexpected 1:2 loss away to Hertha Berlin in the last round. The loss came as a result of the hectic pace that Borussia is in, having played 4 games in 10 days in 3 different competition (3W 1 L). After the loss in Berlin, Dortmund played a quarterfinal Cup game against Lotte, in which they have dominated the pitch but failed to score a goal in the first 56 minutes. Pulisic, Schurrle and Schmelzer scored one goal each to help their team advance into the next round.
The BVBs coach Thomas Tuchel decided to rest their best player Aubameyang, while also sidelining Wigle and Sokratis. Marco Reus was unable to play due to injury while Mario Gotze has been rumored to be dealing with metabolic disorder and is projected to miss the remainder of the season, while some reports say that his career is also in question.
On the other side, the FC Ingolstadt is traveling to Dortmund not having won in their last three games, with only 1 draw that came in the last round when Die Schanzer pulled a 2:2 draw at home against the FC Koln. It won’t get easier for the away team as they are facing one of the best teams at their turf, considering that BVB has not lost at the SIGNAL IDUNA PARK for 32 straight home games. With that on mind, the away team will enter a decisive period of the season which shall prove if the possess enough strength to overcome the 7 point deficit and step out of the relegation zone.
The visitors have not tasted too much success in the second part of the season so far, winning only two games, tasting the defeat in 5 games and pulling a draw in the last round – total of 7 points out of 8 games (possible 24 points). Not very optimistic if you are a diehard FC Ingolstadt 04 fan!!!
Prior to their 2:2 home draw, Die Schanzer suffered a 0:2 blow to Borussia Monchengladbach and a 5:2 away loss to Hoffenheim. Interesting enough for their matchup against Hoffenheim is the fact that Ingolstadt had a 2:1 lead in that game with 30 minutes left to play, but then conceded 4 goals in the remaining period. Their defensive line has not been working too well, as it is noticeable that they Ingolstadt has been conceded a load of goals lately, which means that this game could turn out to be a high scoring one.
A glimpse of hope for the visitors is the fact that they have pulled a huge point in their reverse meeting with Dortmund when they managed to play 3:3 in a very entertaining matchup. However, the hosts are also under a huge imperative to win in this game as their battle for the top positions is ongoing, especially after the last rounds slipup. With all being said, I expect a total attack towards the visitor’s goal and the BVB to keep the possession of the ball for most of the time. This game could easily go over 3+ goals, but my pick for this matchup is the AH -1.5 on Borussia Dortmund that is offered at -118!
For the ones that would like to put an extra bet, go with the Over 3+ goals being offered at -104.
My Pick: AH -1.5 Borussia Dortmund (-118)
