RB Leipzig vs Mainz 05
Red Bull Arena, Leipzig
Sunday, 20-09-2020 @4:30pm
Seven of the last eight meetings between the sides have featured four or more goals. Leipzig failed to win in ten of their 17 home games last season. Leipzig scored exactly three in each of their final four home league wins last term, three of which ended 3-1
Leipzig had a memorable time of things against Mainz last season, winning their two Bundesliga meetings by a combined score of 13.
Leipzig won 8-0 at home in November last year before following up with a 5-0 rout at Mainz in May. However leading scorer Timo Werner, who netted a hat-trick in both hammerings, has left for Chelsea, so an equally emphatic victory seems unlikely.
Hee-chan Hwang has been snapped-up from Salzburg as Werner’s replacement and he hit the ground running with the final goal in Leipzig’s 3-0 DFB Pokal win at Nuremberg last weekend. That said, he is unlikely to have the same influence, particularly so early in his development.
Leipzig, who impressed in reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League last term, failed to win in ten of their 17 home games last season and may take time to hit top stride.
Mainz finished the last campaign strongly with defeat in only five of their final 13 games with victories over Borussia Dortmund, Hertha Berlin and Frankfurt in that period.
Seven of the last eight meetings between the sides have featured four or more goals, with Leipzig winning on five occasions and reigning supreme in three of the four to take place on their home soil.
Wolfsburg vs Bayer Leverkusen
VOLKSWAGEN Arena, Wolfsburg
Sunday, 20-09-202 @7pm
Bayer Leverkusen have won on their last four Bundesliga trips to Wolfsburg. Leverkusen won ten of their 17 Bundesliga away games last season. 16 of the last 18 Bundesliga meetings between these sides have finished with over 2.5 goals
Bayer Leverkusen have won on their last four Bundesliga trips to Wolfsburg, including a 2-0 victory here in November last year, and Peter Bosz’s strong travellers look good value to repeat the trick.
Leverkusen tailed off at the end of last season as they missed out on a top-four finish with dropped points in three of their final six contests.
However, Bosz’s boys still finished fifth, just six points behind second-placed Leipzig and some 14 points ahead of Wolfsburg in seventh.
Many may be concerned by the departures of Kai Havertz to Chelsea and Kevin Volland to Monaco. That pair scored 22 of their 61 league goals but the signing of Roma’s Patrick Schik, who netted ten times in 22 appearances while on loan at Leipzig last season, is an astute one which reduces that damage.
Leverkusen won ten of their 17 away games last season – only top three Bayern, Leipzig and Dortmund were more productive on their travels.
Wolfsburg are capable of securing another European qualification spot but they managed to win just four of their 17 home league games last term.
Bundesliga results so far on
Friday, 18-09-2020
-Bayern Munich 8-0 Schalke 04
Saturday, 20-09-2020
-Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 Arminia Bielefeld
-Koln 2-3 Hoffenheim
-Union Berlin 1-3 Augsburg
-Stuttgart 2-3 Freigburg
-Werder Bremen 1-4 Hertha Berlin
-Borussia Dortmund 3-0 Borussia Monchengladbach
