Bayern Munich begin their quest for a sixth consecutive German league title as they take on Bayer Leverkusen in the opening round of Bundesliga matches at the Allianz Arena.
Bayern Munich
Bayern won their 27th overall and fifth consecutive German league title last season, finishing fifteen points above second placed RB Leipzig. They didn’t have the greatest of pre-seasons, winning a few domestic friendlies before travelling to Asia for the International Champions Cup. In China, they lost on penalties to Arsenal before being hammered 4-0 by AC Milan. They then went on to Singapore, where they narrowly beat English champions Chelsea and lost 2-0 to Inter. Then, in the Audi Cup which they hosted, they were beaten 3-0 by Liverpool and 2-0 by Napoli. That meant they failed to even score a goal in four of six elite friendlies.
The domestic season started with the DFL Super Cup, where an 88th minute own-goal earned them a 2-2 draw against Borussia Dortmund before Bayern won 5-4 on penalties. Last weekend, they took on Chemnitzer in the first round of the DFB Pokal in a game in which they dominated to secure a 5-0 victory. It may not have been the best preparation ahead of a new season but Bayern have done the job in competitive matches so far, and will be confident of starting the defence of their league title with a convincing victory.
Bayer Leverkusen
Leverkusen had a disappointing campaign last season, finishing just four points above the relegation zone in 12th position. That lowly finish was the first time they had finished outside the top ten since 2002/03, and ended a run of seven consecutive seasons in which they finished in the top five.
Heiko Herrlich has taken over as the new head coach and he will be hoping to lift Leverkusen back up the table and compete for a place in the Champions League. However, it’s a tough task to turn last season’s form around. Especially after their extremely poor pre-season.
They won just one of seven friendlies, and under-performed against a lower league team in the first round of the DFB Pokal. Playing away at 3.Liga side Karlsruher, they were held to a goalless draw before winning 3-0 After Extra Time. It hasn’t been the ideal build up to a new season, and they will have to up their game considerably if they want to avoid an opening day drubbing.
Head to Head
Since August 1979, these teams have met 78 times in competitive fixtures. Bayern hold a massive lead, with 45 victories. Leverkusen have won 17, and 16 have been draws. Leverkusen have won just one of the last ten, with Bayern winning five, and four ending level. In fact, Leverkusen have only scored one goal in the last four meetings. Also, Bayern have won the last four meetings in which they were the home team.
However, Leverkusen have picked up two goalless draws from their last three matches against Bayern. That includes the most recent meeting, in April this year, where they played the last 31 minutes with ten men but still fought for well-earned point.
Betting Odds and Predictions
Bayern are a huge betting favourite to win this game, and we honestly cannot see any other result than a home win here. Betway have the champions priced at 2/9 for the victory, with Leverkusen a big outsider at odds of 11/1. A draw is probably the best the away side can hope for here, and that’s priced at 11/2.
Both teams have scored in a match just once in the last seven meetings. With Leverkusen struggling to score against a third-tier team last time out, they will find it even harder to break through Bayern’s defence. Therefore, we would comfortably have a punt on ‘No’ in the Both Teams to Score market at odds of 8/11. This is even more likely considering two of the last three meetings have been goalless.
If you think, like us, that Bayern will win this match, it may be better backing them to win to nil. This is priced at 1/1 and is better odds than backing both teams not to score. Robert Lewandowski has netted three goals in Bayern’s two competitive matches this season, and is priced at 2/5 in the anytime scorer market. This may not be the greatest of odds but it provides fantastic profit potential.
Top Betting Tips
We do think Bayern will win this, so our top betting tip for this match is a home win at odds of 2/9 with betway. Our next best tip is Robert Lewandowski to score anytime, at odds of 2/1 with the same betting company.