SC Freiburg vs Borussia Dortmund
They are not making it easy for themselves – far from it in fact.
However, Borussia Dortmund have a real chance of ending Bayern Munich’s six-year domestic dominance.
As we enter the final stages of the Bundesliga campaign, Lucien Favre’s men remain in the hunt for a first title since 2012.
Yet it is exactly fixtures like this where they have struggled in the past and cannot afford to slip up this time around.
Talking Points
They had some nervous moments late on but Dortmund overcame Mainz last weekend thanks to a super show from the young talent Jadon Sancho.
Now they need a similar result, particularly as they will be playing after Munich and find themselves four points adrift.
Although Freiburg have not won in four matches, they held Bayern to a 1-1 draw a little over a fortnight ago, so the visitors will know this encounter will provide a challenge.
Raphael Guerreiro and Christian Pulisic, who has agreed a move to sign for Chelsea next season, both missed out last weekend and in the 5-0 drubbing to Bayern a fortnight ago.
And in further good news for the challengers, top scorer Paco Alcacer will hope to make it off the bench at the very least. He missed the Bayern game through injury and watched as an unused substitute against Mainz but has three goals in his last two starts.
In goalkeeper Roman Bürki, Maximilian Philipp and Ömer Toprak, there are three former Freiburg players who will be keen to remind their former employers of their talents, while Favre’s team will be guaranteed Champions League football next season should they avoid defeat.
Avoiding defeat is unlikely to be enough, however, as only victory will realistically suffice.
In contrast, Freiburg may well be without their joint-top scorer Nils Petersen who isn’t expected to recover in time.
Christian Streich’s side will miss him but will still pose a threat at set-pieces. They have been one of the Bundesliga most dangerous sides at set-pieces this term and last season Freiburg hit a league-high 18 of their 32 goals (56.3 per cent) from dead-balls.
They will certainly hope Luca Waldschmidt is back. Twelve different players have scored for Freiburg so far this season but it’s Petersen and Waldschmidt who have accounted for 16 of the south-west club’s 39 leagues goals.
The expectation is for a Dortmund triumph – can they deliver when the pressure is on?
History
You have to go back to May 2010 for the last time Freiburg defeated Dortmund. That was a 3-1 success. Since then, the clubs have met on 15 occasions with two draws and Dortmund winning the other 13 times.
Both those matches were last season. This corresponding fixture ended goalless before Freiburg snatched a 2-2 draw at the Signal Iduna Park thanks to a Petersen double.
In fact, it would have been more had Jeremy Toljan not scored a last minute equaliser.
Earlier this season, Dortmund ran out 2-0 winners with captain Marco Reus (penalty) and Alcacer on target.
Dortmund are unbeaten in their last 15 matches against Freiburg, but Favre has not won in Germany’s sunniest city in four attempts as a coach (drawn one, lost three).
Betting Tip
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SC Freiburg vs Borussia Dortmund | Borussia Dortmund, Asian Handicap -1.00 @ 1.92 |
| April 21, 21:30 (GMT+8) |
The SBOBET Bundesliga betting odds on the title race remain intriguing and close to call.
There’s nothing close about what is available for this one though.
Dortmund are priced 1X2 @ 1.53 and Asian Handicap odds offers prices of -1.00 @ 1.89 and -1.25 @ 2.20.
In contrast, as the Black Forest club look for the win that would secure their safety for another season with room to spare, they are priced 1X2 @ 5.80. Even the draw is offered at an unlikely @ 4.20.
Asian Handicap on a Freiburg success sees bets of +1.00 @ 2.04 and + 1.75 @ 2.33.
If you expect goals in a contest in which sides have been far from convincing at the back, then look at over 3.00 goals @ 2.00 or over 3.25 goals @ 2.29.
There’s also total goal 2-3 @ 2.06 and total goal 4-6 @ 2.75 to assess, while the Double Chance or Draw – Freiburg or Draw – is offered @ 2.39.
A repeat of last season’s draw in this fixture – correct score 0-0 – is available @ 16.00. For Dortmund to repeat their victory earlier in the season – correct score 0-2 – you will find odds of @ 8.00.
Anything other than victory and the prize drifts closer to Munich.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
| = €20 (Highly confident) |
 = €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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