Bundesliga Betting: Champs to sign off in style

Bundesliga Betting: Champs to sign off in style

The Bundesliga season comes to a thrilling conclusion on Saturday, and Kevin Hatchard has selections from both ends of the table.

Lewy can break the record in style

Bayern Munich v Augsburg
Saturday 22 May, 14:30
Live on BT Sport and Betfair Live Video

Having equalled the legendary Gerd Müller by scoring 40 Bundesliga goals in one season, Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski can now eclipse his illustrious predecessor by breaking a record that has stood since 1972. The fact that the Polish goal-getter stands on the brink of sporting immortality is a testament to his dedication, his professionalism and his quality. Not only will he likely surpass a mark that no-one thought would ever be reached again, but he will have done in just 29 appearances.

Bayern face Bavarian rivals on Saturday, but in all honesty, Augsburg can be forgiven for being on the beach. They secured survival last weekend by beating Werder Bremen, and having accomplished his primary mission, coach Markus Weinzierl can start planning for next season. FCA have lost eight of their last nine on the road, so anything but a defeat would be a big surprise.

Bayern will want to put on a show before they lift the meisterschale, and everything will be geared towards helping Lewandowski not only break the record, but smash it to smithereens. I'll use the Bet Builder on the Sportsbook to back Bayern to win, Over 3.5 Goals and Lewandowski to score two goals or more at 2.72.

Panic-stricken coaching call set to fail

Werder Bremen v Borussia Mönchengladbach
Saturday 22 May, 14:30
Live on Betfair Live Video

Desperation can cause clubs to make strange decisions, but I can't help feeling that Werder Bremen's switch between indecision and haste is going to cost them. Sporting director Frank Baumann should have either acted earlier during the club's nine-match winless run, or he should have stuck with Florian Kohfeldt, the man who led Werder away from automatic relegation on the final day of last season. If Baumann trusted Kohfeldt to win under pressure and avoid the drop on Matchday 34 last season, why fire him this time?

The solution Baumann has found is to hand the keys to Thomas Schaaf, who won the title with Bremen back in 2004. Schaaf's record with Werder is outstanding, but it was all a long time ago, and failures at Eintracht Frankfurt and Hannover have since blotted his copybook. I'm told that while Schaaf has proven to be an effective leader, he's not always the most encouraging of bosses, especially with young players. In just a week, can he really get the best out of a dysfunctional team that has lost its confidence?

If Werder draw or lose and Koln win, Werder are joining their old foes Hamburg in Bundesliga 2., and they'll suffer their first relegation since 1980. They face a Borussia Mönchengladbach side that can still qualify for the new Conference League, and sporting director Max Eberl has made it clear that's a target he wants to hit. Coach Marco Rose wants to sign off with a win before heading to Borussia Dortmund, and I think that his players are capable of achieving that against a side that has lost its rhythm, confidence and nerve.

I'll back the visitors Draw No Bet here at 1.93.

Brave Bielefeld could fall at the last

Stuttgart v Arminia Bielefeld
Saturday 22 May, 14:30
Live on Betfair Live Video

Before the season, if you had offered Bielefeld fans the chance to have the club's destiny in its own hands going into Matchday 34, they'd have gleefully accepted. That is the situation - if Arminia win this game, they are safe from the drop. However, if they slip up here, they could sink into either the playoff spot or the automatic dropzone.

Stuttgart are tough opponents. Pellegrino Matarazzo's impressive young side is looking to wrap up the campaign with a third straight win, and snatching a Conference League place from Union Berlin is a live possibility. VfB have won four of their last six home matches, and will go into this game with confidence. In-form Austrian striker Sasa Kalajdzic will be keen to add to his total of 16 league goals.

All of the pressure is on an Arminia side that has won just twice on the road all season, and if results are going against both Werder and Köln, there may even come a point where Frank Kramer's men might be able to relax a bit. I just can't see a side that has failed to score in four of its last six away games winning this game, so I'll back Stuttgart Draw No Bet at 1.92.