Bundesliga: Berlin and Bayern Could be Quite a Spectacle

Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich

I had to double check the Bundesliga table to realise this is actually a meeting of fifth versus first so Bundesliga 2021 highlights must be eagerly anticipated.

On saying that, it is still very much between David against Goliath given it is a clash between a club which had never graced the top level of German football until a few years ago up against multiple time champions.

Yet, if their meetings last season are anything to go by, we never rule out the underdogs.

Talking Points

One of the reasons for that is because they are managed by Urs Fischer – the highly-rated Swiss coach who has become so popular they’ve even named a zoo after him! Fischer already had a pedigree before he moved to Berlin.

For example, he was in charge of three clubs in his home country, starting out with Zurich and also serving time with Thun and Basel. He led Zurich to a runners-up spot in his first season there and got both them and unfancied Thun into the Europa League group stage.

He followed that up with back-to-back league titles and one Swiss Cup with Basel where he also gained Champions League group stage experience.

Yet what he has achieved since crossing the border to Germany is on another level altogether.

After being appointed head coach in June 2018, he felt confident he could be a success at the Bundesliga 2 club. But not only was his first year in charge one to live long in the memory in the capital, he actually led them to the promised land – guiding the east Berliners to a remarkable first promotion to the German top-flight by finishing third in the second tier and then getting the better of Stuttgart over two legs in May 2019.

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No one expected European qualification to follow so quickly of course, but indeed it did. And after he was handed a new contract last December, Fischer’s men finished in seventh spot in the Bundesliga, qualifying for European football for the first time as a result.

Whether they have the squad to sustain a run in Europe and stay in the upper echelons of the domestic table remains unclear but they will certainly relish taking on the mighty Bayern.

The Bavarian giants have regularly secured the best players from their rivals over the past decade. And to further highlight the gap in resources, they also flexed their muscles and pulled off a major heist this summer by securing the signature of a rival manager.

Last weekend, Bayern won 4-0 against Hoffenheim for a third thumping win of a superb week and are back at the summit.

Poland striker Robert Lewandowski – the undisputed goal king – scored his 10th goal in nine Bundesliga games this season after Serge Gnabry gave the hosts a first-half lead.

Robert Lewandowski and company will go all out once again in their next Bundesliga fixture — Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski celebrates after scoring their second goal against Hoffenheim

Substitutes Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Kingsley Coman then netted late goals to seal the victory.

So with respect to perennial challengers Borussia Dortmund, surely everyone is playing for second place already.

Despite all that, those facts will not make Bayern’s visit to Berlin any easier.

Fischer and the passionate home support will insist upon it!

History

The corresponding fixture last term finished 1-1 and needed a late Robert Lewandowski goal to save the champions who had trailed for most of the match to Grischa Promel’s fourth minute header.

That was in December.

It was the identical outcome in Munich in the return match when Jamal Musiala give Bayern a 68^th-minute lead only for Marcus Ingvartsen to earn the visitors a point four minutes from time.

A Robert Lewandowski penalty and a Benjamin Pavard header had won the match 2-0 the previous season, while Bayern also won on home turf this time 2-1 thanks to the same scorers in what was the first ever Bundesliga meeting between the clubs.

These are the only four meetings between the clubs as Berlin were promoted to the German top-flight for the first time in their history in 2019.

Betting Tip

	Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich	Bayern Munich First Half Asian Handicap -0.75 @ 2.13
	October 30, 21:30 (GMT+8)

It’s Bayern Munich all the way with the SBOTOP Bundesliga 2021 betting odds.

The free-scoring German champions can be backed in a variety of ways, including 1X2 @ 1.33, Asian Handicap -1.75 @ 2.17 and First Half Asian Handicap -0.75 @ 2.17.

Union Berlin, meanwhile, have odds of 1X2 @ 7.60 and Asian Handicap +1.25 @ 2.28 while the draw is on offer @ 5.40.

A repeat of both fixtures last season would earn a decent pay day with Correct Score 1-1 available @ 10.50.

And given those results, how about Double Chance Union Berlin or Draw which is on offer @ 3.15?

I still cannot see beyond a Bayern victory and expect goals, as do clearly the pundits given over 3.75 goals is available @ 2.26 with total goal options ranging from 0-1 @ 6.80, 2-3 @ an attractive 2.32 and 4-6 @ 2.24.

Union will be no pushovers but I am backing the visitors to get another win.