Bundesliga: Farke’s Fading Foals Desperate to Beat Dortmund

Borussia Monchengladbach vs Borussia Dortmund

The Battle of the Borussias is set to begin the last weekend before the Bundesliga‘s World Cup break. Both clubs are coming off losses, with Dortmund suffering a defeat to Wolfsburg and Gladbach going down to relegation strugglers Bochum.

Daniel Farke’s Foals are in the midst of a rough patch, one they will be hoping to snap with a big win against BVB.

However, the Bundesliga 2022 betting odds will still fancy Dortmund despite their recent struggles in attack.

Talking Points

Farke’s Foals faltering

It’s not going well for Daniel Farke at Borussia Monchengladbach at the moment. The Foals are mired in midtable mediocrity – ninth place – after some poor Bundesliga 2022 results. They have won just one of their last five games, with three defeats. That includes a disappointing 2-1 loss to second-from-bottom Bochum in midweek.

Their current slide has coincided with star goalkeeper Yann Sommer being sidelined with an ankle injury he picked up in their DFL Cup tie.

Veteran Tobias Sippel, who was unconvincing in their losses to Frankfurt and Union Berlin, didn’t play against Bochum due to injury, so 20-year-old Jan Olschowsky was thrown in for his professional debut.

But there is hope that Sommer will be back in time for the big game against Dortmund, which would be a huge boost for Gladbach and their middling defence.

The Foals are faring much better up front, though. They have scored 24 goals in 14 games, which is tied for the fourth-most in the Bundesliga.

Marcus Thuram is having a terrific bounce-back season with nine goals – tied for third in the league – and three assists. And fellow French forward Alassane Plea has been producing his share of Bundesliga 2022 highlights with two goals and seven assists.

Dortmund attack disappointing

Borussia Dortmund missed a great opportunity to move back to second in the Bundesliga as they lost 2-0 to Wolfsburg this midweek. That’s already Dortmund’s fifth defeat in 14 games this season and it snapped their three-game winning streak.

Dortmund dominated possession (63 per cent to 37) and had a 21-17 edge in shots, but they were unable to find a way through Wolfsburg’s attack.

Despite their recent win streak, Dortmund’s attack remains inconsistent. Donyell Malen and Karim Adeyemi, who both started out wide, have yet to score a goal this season.

Meanwhile, 17-year-old Youssoufa Moukoko appears to be the first-choice centre-forward, supplanting veteran Anthony Modeste, who has also been a disappointment despite his Der Klassiker heroics.

There was hope that Marco Reus would be ready to return, but the Dortmund skipper has suffered a setback on his recovery from an ankle injury and will likely miss out again as he faces a race to be fit in time for the World Cup.

Dortmund would have surely been delighted to have Reus back in the lineup as he loves playing against his old club Gladbach. He has scored 11 goals and provided 10 assists in 16 games against the Foals. Moreover, Reus has won 13 of 16 games he’s played against Gladbach, with just two defeats.

History

Dortmund have dominated the Battle of the Borussias over the years. They have a 19-6 advantage over Gladbach in wins, with three draws over their last 29 Bundesliga matches.

Dortmund had won 11 games in a row over Gladbach, but the Foals finally got two over on BVB with back-to-back wins in 2021.

However, Dortmund got their revenge as they thrashed Gladbach 6-0 in their most recent meeting at Signal Iduna Park. Marco Reus, who loves playing against his old team, had another brilliant match with a brace and three assists.

Betting Tip

SBOTOP odds have Borussia Dortmund installed as 2.14 favourites to beat Borussia Monchengladbach, who are priced at 3.15 at home. A draw is 3.50.

While things are looking gloomy for Gladbach at the moment, it is undeniable that the quality is still there. The front two of Thuram and Plea is still as good as any in the Bundesliga, and they are arguably more dangerous than any forward Dortmund can field at the moment.

I expect Gladbach to come out with more sense of urgency at home to pick up a positive result before the World Cup break.

 

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