When Borussia Dortmund thrashed Schalke in the Revierderby three weeks ago, football fans around Europe breathed a big sigh of relief.
Okay not everyone was happy, least of all Schalke fans, I guess! And there was a fair amount of opposition to the Bundesliga’s restart when it was under scrutiny in April, but since the successful kick-off on 16th May, life has become a little more familiar, though in unfamiliar circumstances.
Empty stadiums and constant testing is a small price to pay to ensure player and fan safety, and for the return of top-flight football. Despite the fears of some journalists and politicians, the restart in the Bundesliga has largely been problem-free.
Karl Lauterbach, a science expert representing the Social Democrats had warned: “The hygiene concept does not work. The effect will be disastrous.” Thankfully his prediction of football risking a second wave of the virus has proved wide of the mark and, with the other European big leagues set to follow, it’s been so far, so good.
Here at SBOBET, we were ready and raring to start bringing the Bundesliga 2020 updates from the beginning of May, and La Liga, the Premier League and Serie A restarts are just around the corner.
So, while we wait for the other leagues to kick off, what can we learn from the Bundesliga experience?
No crowd means no home advantage
Some clubs, particularly in England where neutral venues have been considered, insisted that losing home advantage would have a major and negative impact on their fortunes, but the stats from Germany tend to refute that opinion, and quite spectacularly.
In the 36 games contested so far, only eight have been won by the home side, with 10 drawn and 18 won by the visitors. So it seems that home advantage is only a factor in a packed stadium. The 12th man really does exist.
Borussia Monchengladbach tried to get their fans on side before a crunch clash at home to Bayer Leverkusen. Die Fohlen filled their stadium with thousands of cardboard cut-outs baring the smiling images of their fans who had sent photos in.
But Bayer’s Kai Havertz scored twice to win the points, though it didn’t wipe the smiles from the faces of the home supporters!
The teams, particularly the visitors, no longer play to the crowd, nor are they affected by it. The players take fewer risks when the stadium is empty, and those who can struggle in front of a hostile crowd can thrive when they are not being booed.
Players are working harder
At least one Bundesliga club has reported that players are reporting more tiredness at the end of a game than in a normal game. The stats suggest that playing time is significantly increased as there is less interaction between players, and between players and fans.
Notably, when a foul is committed the victim spends significantly less time rolling around on the floor, instead he gets up and takes the free-kick. And without tens of thousands of angry fans to fire them up, the team which committed the foul doesn’t surround the referee and protest for an age.
Equally, when a goal is scored, the conceding team doesn’t have to stand around for a minute, waiting for the player and crowd celebrations to die down before the restart.
The theatre has disappeared a little, but so have the theatrics and that can’t be a bad thing.
Die Bayern’s happy return
Two months away from the game has done no damage whatsoever to FC Bayern’s momentum as the champions race towards an eighth successive title. A 5-0 thumping of Fortuna Dusseldorf last week was an emphatic statement of intent, if anyone needed it.
In his pursuit of the Golden Boot, Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski has become only the third player in European football history (after Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi) to score 40 goals in five consecutive seasons.
With a seven-point lead and only five games to play, the Bundesliga 2020 betting odds have Bayern nailed on to win the league, with Borussia Dortmund hanging on to second place.
At the other end of the table and with SC Paderborn stranded at the bottom, the battle to avoid the 16th and 17th places looks like it will be fought out between Werder Bremen, Fortuna Dusseldorf and Mainz.
Meanwhile, the race for the fourth Champions League spot is the most compelling; Monchengladbach and Bayer are locked together on 56 points, with RB Leipzig two points ahead in third place.
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