Final duel of Round 13 in Germany this week features FC Koln, the worse team in the league, and Hertha BSC, one of the most unpredictable teams in the league so far. The Billy Goats recorded their third consecutive defeat last Saturday in Mainz (1:0 loss), while Hertha got lectured in front of their own crowd by Borussia Monchengladbach squad (4:2 loss).
I’m sure that both teams are looking for a break, especially the hosts, but I’m not sure that they have enough roster quality to expect anything. I’m also looking forward to see how much patience the board and the fans will have for their manager Peter Stoger because it’s unbelievable that his still at the helm of the team having in mind the results he has achieved this season.
FC Koln vs. Hertha BSC
Three-Way: 1: FC Koln +172; X: +231 Draw; 2: Hertha BSC +204 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread 0: FC Koln -114; Hertha BSC +114
Total +2.5: Over +131; Under -133
FC KOLN
The FC Koln squad is still winless in the German Bundesliga after 12 rounds of play but they’ve been showing some signs of life in the UEFA Europa League competition and that’s probably the only reason Peter Stoger hasn’t been sacked yet. They will have a chance to advance to the knockout phase with a potential win in Belgrade over Red Star team in the last round at the beginning of December, but it’s about time for them to start winning points in the domestic competition because a failure to do so will result in relegation to the second-tier Bundesliga and that would be a disaster for the fans.
They are ranked at the top bottom of the league table with only two points earned (six less than the closest opponent) and a 0-2-10 record (0-1-4 at home). Their goal difference is 4-23 (2-9 at home) and 58% of their overall matches had over 2.5 goals in total while 20% of their home games had over 3.5 goals in total. 75% of FC Koln’s goals have been scored in the second half and the team was losing at halftime in 67% of their duels. They’ve also managed to concede at least one goal in both halves in 60% of their home games (highest percentage in the league) while both teams scored in every third FC Koln’s showdown.
Coach Stoger prefers the 4-4-2 scheme with Klunter, Maroh, Sorensen and Rausch as defensive linemen and Jojic, Lehman, Ozcan and Zoller operating in the middle of the field. Cordoba and Guirassy are centre-forwards in this formation. Sehrou Guirassy, Dominique Heintz, Yuya Osako and Frederik Sorensen are the authors of four goals scored for the team in these 12 games while Zoller and Sorensen along with Jhon Cordoba and Tim Handwerker have one assist each. Passing segment belongs to Matthias Lehmann and Dominique Heintz with 469 and 421 total passes while goalkeeper Timo Horn has 198 shots against, 41 saves and the measly sum of two clean-sheet games so far. Frederik Sorensen recorded team-high five yellow cards.
Sorensen (yellow cards suspension) is out for the next match while Dominic Maroh’s (thigh), Leonardo Bittencourt’s (thigh) and Marius Laux’s (unknown) status is unknown. Simon Zoller (thigh), Dominique Heintz (thigh) and Marcel Risse (meniscus) are expected to be ready during the month of January next year while Marco Hoger (thigh) and Jonas Hector (ankle) should be ready during the next month. Christian Clemens (groin) is expected to be back in few days.
HERTHA BSC
Unlike their next opponent, the team from German capital has been playing on a warm-cold system so far into the season. The team hasn’t recorded two consecutive matches with the same outcome since the beginning of the season except once (two consecutive draws in Week 3 and 4). These ups and downs are not nearly enough to repeat the last season’s result in the Bundesliga and that’s becoming more and more obvious when we look at the table rankings. On Thursday, they received the final blow in the UEFA Europa League competition as they were defeated by Spanish side Atheltic Bilbao on the road thus losing even theoretical chance of advancing to the eight-final, one round before the end of the group stage.
In Bundesliga, they currently rank at the No. 14 spot with only 14 points earned and 3-5-4 record (0-3-2 on the road). Their goal difference is 16-19 (5-8 on the road) and 58% of their overall matches had under 2.5 goals in total while 20% of their road games had over 3.5 goals in total. The team managed to concede at least one goal in each of their last 11 duels but on the other side, they’ve managed to score at least two goals or more in each of their last three matches. Both teams scored in 60% of Hertha’s visits and the most common score on the road was 1:1 draw (occurred twice). They’ve also managed to score at least one goal in both halves in 25% of their showdowns while managing to concede at least one goal in both halves in 33% of those games.
Hungarian manager Pal Dardai prefers the most common 4-4-2 scheme with Plattenhardt, Rekik, Langkamo and Weiser staring as defenders and Kalou, Skjelbred, Maier and Esswein operating in front of them as midfielders. Ibisevic and Selke are usual starters up front. Mathew Leckie tops the team in scoring with four goals while winger Salomon Kalou has three in his account. Besides two scored goals, Vedad Ibisevic along with Marvin Plattenhardt leads the team in assisting with three. Passing segment is being dominated by defender Karim Rekik with 505 total passes while goalie Rune Jarstein has 151 shots against, 41 saves and only one clean-sheet game at the moment. Marvin Plattenhardt also has most problems with bookings (three yellow cards) in the team, while Vedad Ibisevic and Genki Haraguchi managed to get sent off once each so far.
Vladimir Darida (knee) should be back in action at the beginning of the next month while Valentin Stocker’s (meniscus) status is unknown. Palko Dardai (toe), Niklas Stark (calf) and Julian Schieber (knee) are all listed as day to day.
FC Koln vs. Hertha BSC – Match Prediction
I’m tired of saying that the time of FC Koln’s first win in Bundesliga this season has finally came but this time I think I might be right. Shaken Hertha squad should present the perfect victim for this task, especially after FC Koln managed to defeat Arsenal at home on Thursday thus staying alive in the hunt for the next phase on the European scene. Home teams held the edge in last year’s duels between these two foes (4:2 win in Koln, 2:1 win in Berlin) and I don’t see why this couldn’t be the case again. When it comes to the total number of goals, I would again go under 2.5 just on a hunch.
My pick: FC Koln to win (+172)
Additional pick: Under 2.5 goals (-133)
