Bundesliga Match Day 33: Preview and Forecast
With just two weeks left in the Bundesliga schedule, it has rapidly become do or die time for a number of teams. The league title was locked up already by Bayern Munich and Schalke 04 - barring a colossal collapse - is seemingly in the driver's seat to notch the second of four berths for the Champions League.
The remaining four European League spots are still there for the taking.
Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, and Bayer Leverkusen are in a full-scale brawl for the final two Champions League berths, while Eintracht Frankfurt and VfB Stuttgart have some hope to sneak into a Europa League slot.
Below, we once again have tried to predict what will happen, though we have been LAUGHABLY awful in doing so of late.
Schalke 04 3, FC Augsburg 1: Schalke can wrap up its Champions League berth with a win. The squad should be motivated after a poor performance in drawing with Borussia Monchengladbach last week. The X Factor for the Royal Blues is how the saga of Max Meyer has affected the squad. Meyer was banished from the team as he heads toward finding a new home in the offseason and has been at major odds with club leadership all season. If Schalke can put that distraction behind it, the Royals Blues could book their trip to next season's Champions League competition. Expect Leon Goretzka to want to give the Schalke fans one last thrill before he heads to Munich this summer.
SC Freiburg 2, Borussia Monchengaldbach 1: With both teams needing a win, Freiburg is simply not as banged up as the Foals at this stage of the season. The loss of Lars Stindl for the season with an ankle injury could have an emotional effect on M'Gladbach, which is expected to be without seven total players for the contest. Thorgan Hazard and Matthias Ginter will have their work cut out for them if they want the Foals to still be in competition for a Europa League berth next weekend. For Freiburg, Nils Petersen and his 15 goals will have to pave the way for the upset win in an effort to put some distance between them and the rest of the RELEGATION DANGER ZONE.
Borussia Dortmund 3, Mainz 1: BVB's disappointing 1-1 draw with Werder Bremen last week was just the latest in what seems like a season of missteps. Marco Reus has been Herculean in trying to will Dortmund to a Champions League berth and it's frankly embarrassing that BVB is not already in the clear. Mainz will not make this easy on Dortmund as they are fighting for their own respective lives in an effort to avoid relegation. The talent of BVB SHOULD be the difference here....should....
Eintracht Frankfurt 2, Hamburger SV 1: The Eagles are all over the map with their performances, while HSV is as dangerous as they have been in an otherwise forgettable season. Der Dinosaur is desperately trying to avoid relegation, while Frankfurt is just aimless and headed on a road to nowhere given its latest performances in the league. It's true that the Eagles have made the DFB Pokal finale for the second consecutive year, but the pending move of Niko Kovac to Munich seems like it has created an ample distraction. Still, Frankfurt should be able to use this game as a way to right itself with the goal of playing for a Europa League slot into the final weekend of the season.
Bayern Munich 4, FC Koln 1: Coming off of a heartbreaking loss to Real Madrid in the Champions League semifinals, there is no telling how Jupp Heynckes is going to approach this game. As it has been proven over the past three weeks, however, it doesn't matter who Heynckes rolls out; they just smash Bundesliga competition. Koln is playing for pride at this stage and have been remarkably likable and fun to watch even as their season has been in a downward spiral. That said, Bayern will win this one big.
Hertha Berlin 2, Hannover 96 1: This is one of the least impactful games on the docket this week. Both teams are secure in their respective spots for next season and have no chance to move up or down. Hertha has been just a bit better over the course of the season and we expect them to stiff-arm Hannover aside for the 'W.'
RB Leipzig 3, Wolfbsurg 2: There is really no good reason to pick Die Roten Bullen this week. The squad has been horrible of late. Leipzig is winless in its last four league games and last five contests overall. They have been PUTRID. For a team that was supposed to make great strides this season, they are on the cusp of losing their top six spot. Thankfully for Leipzig, they are playing lowly Wolfsburg and should (?) be able to get by on pure talent even without the likes of Emil Forsberg (suspended), Naby Keita (suspended), Willie Orban (suspended), Marcel Halstenberg (injured), and Marcel Sabitzer (injured) . It will be curious to see if Ralph Hasenhüttl will unleashTimo Werner this weekend or if he keeps him shackled up.
Hoffenheim 2, VfB Stuttgart 2: In what could be the most competitive game of the weekend, Stuttgart is in dire need of a win to stay in contention for the Europa League, while Hoffenheim is desperate to hang on to its current position of holding the final Champions League berth. With Serge Gnabry out due to a groin injury, Hoffenheim will have to rely on the incredibly hot Andrej Kramaric and the ever-solid Mark Uth to generate its offense. Meanwhile, Stuttgart will need a staunch effort from veterans like Mario Gomez, Holger Badstuber, and Christian Gentner to lead the way if it wants to retain any hope for a Europa League position. This just feels like a hard-fought draw between two game squads.
Bayern Leverkusen 2, Werder Bremen 1: Leverkusen need this game, but Bremen has proved to be an extremely difficult opponent for just about everyone since February. Die Werkself dominated Stuttgart last week, but still lost because of an inability to convert its chances. We think that the scoring slump is about to be over, but Bremen will not make it easy on Leverkusen.
Last week's record: 3-6
This season's (terrible) record: 50-58
Note: Predicted ties count as a win if correct and as a loss if there is a winner; conversely if a game is predicted to have a winner but ends in a tie, it will count as a loss.
