After midweek packed with European team competition duels we’re getting back to our regular domestic league, more precisely German Bundesliga. The first matchup of Week 13 will take place at AWD-Arena in Hannover between two squads that got promoted to the top tier of German soccer at the beginning of the season. Hannover squad is coming off from their worst defeat of the year as they were torpedoed by Werder in Bremen, 4:0. Stuttgart on the other side recorded another home win, this time against struggling Dortmund (2:1) in last round’s opening game.
It’s money-winning time so let’s take a closer look and prepare you for the right decisions regarding your picks this weekend.
Hannover 96 vs. VfB Stuttgart
Three-Way: 1: Hannover 96 +154; X: +250 Draw; 2: VfB Stuttgart +214 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread 0: Hannover 96 -128; VfB Stuttgart +123
Total +2.5: Over -105; Under +100
HANNOVER 96
After a solid start of the season, the newcomers in the league from Hannover look to be gradually slowing down the tempo and dropping down in the table rankings. The team has recorded two consecutive losses but we have to bear in mind that both of those games where visits (1:2 at RB Leipzig, 0:4 at Werder Bremen) that followed two great performances (2:1 road win at FC Augsburg and 4:2 home win over Dortmund). The squad is now heading back to perform in front of their own crowd and they’ll need to put on a solid outplay if they want to stabilize the moral after that 4:0 flop against until then-winless Bremen squad.
The team currently ranks at No. 8 spot in the league table with 18 points and a 5-3-4 record (3-1-1 at home). Their goal difference is 15-15 (8-4 at home) and they’ve managed to concede two goals or more in each of their last three matches. The team is also having some physical and mental condition problems because 33% of their conceded goals occurred in the last 15 minutes of the games, while on the other side, 80% of their scored goals occurred in the second half. 50% of their matches had over 2.5 goals in total while 20% of their home showdowns had over 3.5 goals in total. Both teams scored in 58% of Hannover’s duels while most common scores at home were 2:0 win and 1:0 win.
Coach Andre Breitenreiner usually uses the 4-3-3 scheme with Sorg, Hubner, Sane and Albornoz as defensive linemen and Klaus, Schwegler and Maier operating in front of them with mostly midfield assignments. Harnik, Bakalorz, and Jonathas have solely attacking responsibilities in this formation. Centre-forward Martin Harnik tops the team in scoring this season with five goals while Ihlas Bebou and Jonathas have three each in their accounts. Jonathas also collected team-high three assists while midfielder Pirmin Schwegler recorded two. Passing segment belongs to defender Salif Sane with 487 total passes while goalies Philipp Tschauner and Michael Esser have 171 shots against, 37 saves and four clean-sheet games combined. Schwegler also collected team-high four yellow cards that make him the most undisciplined player on the roster.
Felipe (thigh) and Edgar Prib (cruciate ligament) are set to return next year in early January and mid-February. Philipp Tschauner (shoulder, Flu), Julian Korb (Flu) and Uffe Bech (meniscus) are all listed as day to day while Noah-Joel Sarenren-Bazee (thigh) is back in training.
VFB STUTTGART
The VfB Stuttgart team is still undefeated at home and winless on the road. As a matter of fact, they’ve lost every single road game so far while scoring three and conceding 13 goals. This horrible trend when visiting will have to change because sooner or later the undefeated streak at home will end and then they’ll be in a big trouble. They could try to go on the same path Hertha BSC squad did last year that implies the best host – worst visitor tactics but that looks like a long shot to get relied on.
Team ranks at the No. 11 spot in the league table with 16 points and a 5-1-6 record (0-0-6 on the road). They score 1.00 and concede 1.25 goals per game and 50% of their overall duels had over 2.5 goals per game while 33% of their road matches had over 3.5 goals per game. They still haven’t managed to score at least one goal in both halves as visitors but they’ve managed to concede at least one goal in both halves in every second road game. Both teams scored in 42% of their total duels and the most common scores on the road were 3:1 loss and 2:0 loss (both occurred twice).
In the last week’s great win over Borussia Dortmund, coach Hannes Wolf used the unusual 3-4-2-1 scheme that on the first glance looks very defensive-based but not so much on the field. This formation can quickly transform into the much more attacking 3-2-4-1 scheme that presents a big threat to the opposing teams, especially down the flanks. Starters at the centre-backs positions were Baumgartl, Badstuber, and Pavard while Insua, Gentner, Ascacibar and Beck operated in front of them. Ozcan, Akolo, and Ginczek started more up front and Akolo managed to score the opening goal in the process. Chadrac Akolo is the team’s leading scorer with four goals while Daniel Ginczek and Simon Terodde have two each at the moment. Dennis Aogo and Berkay Ozcan collected team-high two assists each while defenders Benjamin Pavard and Timo Baumgartl hold the passing segment under their control with 680 and 557 total passes. Goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler has 139 shots against, 34 saves and four clean-sheet games while midfielder Santiago Ascacibar presents a liability when it comes to the discipline segment so far with team-high five yellow cards collected.
Leading scorer Chadrac Akolo (calf) got injured last weekend and he will be out for a couple of weeks while Anastasios Donis (shoulder) should be ready by the end of the month. Daniel Ginczek’s (groin), Dzemis Burnic’s (knee), Alexander Meyer’s (thigh) and Matthias Zimmermann’s (cruciate ligament) status is unknown while Marcin Kaminski (ankle) should be back in few days. Carlos Mane (knee) is listed as day to day.
Hannover 96 vs. VfB Stuttgart – Match Prediction
Last season’s matchups in Zweita between these two foes both went on Hannover team side (1:0 win at home, 2:1 win on the road). In 2015 season, before both squads got relegated to the second-tier Bundesliga, the visiting teams took full prey (2:1 in Stuttgart and 3:1 in Hannover) meaning that Hannover squad haven’t emerged victorious at AWD Arena against VfB Stuttgart in top Bundesliga since February 2012 (4:2 victory). The Same scenario could be on display again on Friday but I’m simply not sure when it comes to the final score here. That’s why my best guess here will be under 2.5 goals in total without an additional pick. For those of you who want to go for the final result a draw makes the most sense but I wouldn’t advise it.
My pick: Under 2.5 goals (+100)
