Bundesliga Betting: Matarazzo's men to shine again

Bundesliga Betting: Matarazzo's men to shine again

We have a rare set of midweek games in the Bundesliga, and Kevin Hatchard's back with three picks.

Road warriors to rack up another win

Arminia Bielefeld v Stuttgart
Wednesday 20 January, 19:30
Live on Betfair Live Video

Arminia Bielefeld were promoted as second-tier champions last term, with Stuttgart ten points behind as runners-up. Since this season began, it has been Stuttgart who have adapted more impressively to life in the top division. Perhaps that's no surprise given the gap in resources - Stuttgart are one of German football's iconic institutions, while Bielefeld are competing at this level for the first time in 11 years.

Stuttgart are already ten points clear of the bottom three, and are only seven points off the top four. They are averaging two goals per game, and have forwards in form in Nicolas Gonzalez and Silas Wamangituka, who have 15 top-flight goals between them. On the road, Stuttgart have won five of their eight league matches.

Conversely, Arminia have lacked punch up front. Skipper Fabian Klos was the top scorer in Bundesliga 2. last term, but he only has two goals in the Bundesliga, and no-one in the team has bettered that tally. Japanese international Ritsu Doan is the team's most talented player, but he lacks killer instinct in front of goal, and he failed to maximise several opportunities in the weekend's goalless draw at Hoffenheim.

Bielefeld have lost at home to Bayern, Dortmund, Leverkusen and Borussia Mönchengladbach, and although Stuttgart aren't quite in that category, the visitors should have enough to win this.

Star strikers can secure Frankfurt victory

Freiburg v Eintracht Frankfurt
Wednesday 20 January, 19:30
Live on Betfair Live Video

As Luka Jovic drew back his right foot and waited for the ball to move into the sweet spot, everyone at Deutsche Bank Park knew there would only be one outcome. The Serbian striker lashed a hip-high volley past Schalke keeper Ralf Fahrmann to score a debut goal on his return to Eintracht Frankfurt. He then added another goal in a 3-1 win, and in a brief cameo as a second-half substitute he had scored as many goals as he'd managed in 18 unhappy months at Real Madrid.

Jovic isn't the only dangerous forward at Frankfurt. Portuguese predator Andre Silva scored the opener against Schalke, and now has 12 Bundesliga goals. He's made the best start to a top-flight season of any Frankfurt player since 2010, and he looks razor-sharp. He has helped propel the Eagles to four straight Bundesliga wins, and coach Adi Hütter has come through a difficult spell.

Freiburg gave the record champions Bayern Munich an almighty scare on Sunday in a 2-1 defeat, but truth be told, Bayern made enough chances to win that game handily. Christian Streich's side has done a great job duffing up bottom-half teams in recent weeks, but they haven't beaten any of the clubs that are currently in the top half of the standings.

Frankfurt look really dangerous in attack at the moment, and I think they'll make plenty of chances against a Freiburg team that has already leaked 26 goals in 16 games. I'll back the visitors +0 on the Asian Handicap at 1.95.

Mainz can eke out another point

Mainz v Wolfsburg
Tuesday 19 January, 19:30
Live on Betfair Live Video

Although they are still in deep trouble at the wrong end of the table, Mainz did manage to escape from Saturday's trip to Borussia Dortmund with a point, which represented the first success for recently-installed coach Bo Svensson. They rode their luck, as Marco Reus missed a penalty and BVB squandered plenty of other chances, but it was still a big psychological boost.

Wolfsburg gave RB Leipzig a bit of a scare in Saturday's 2-2 draw at the Volkswagen Arena, and they have still only lost to Bayern and Dortmund this season. They are a very tough team to beat, and Oliver Glasner has instilled a good sense of game management in his players. For example, they went down to ten men in their last away game at Union Berlin, but they played intelligently with and without the ball, and came from behind to draw.

Wolfsburg have racked up a league-high eight draws in 16 matches, and that includes five stalemates in eight away games. Mainz haven't won a home match yet, but they are improving, and at 4.0, the draw looks a bit too big.