Bayern Munich will be aiming to close the gap on Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund when they travel to the Westfalenstadion for Saturday’s Klassiker.
Die Roten find themselves four points adrift of top spot after 10 fixtures, having taken just eight points from the last available 18.
Latest Odds
Nevertheless, they remain 11/10 (2.10) favourites with bet365 to come out on top for the fourth consecutive league meeting with their rivals.
Lucien Favre’s men have won seven and lost none of their 10 league matches so far this campaign, and are priced at 21/10 (3.10) to maintain that unbeaten streak with a big win here.
GettyJust one of the last eight encounters between this pair has resulted in a draw, but you can get odds of 11/4 (3.75) on this one finishing up all square.
Team News
Marcel Schmelzer and Abdou Diallo are both ruled out through injury, although Lukas Piszczek returned to the side in Wednesday’s Champions League defeat against Atletico Madrid.
Arjen Robben, Thiago Alcantara and Corentin Tolisso all remain sidelined for the guests, while Kinglsey Coman is also short of fitness despite returning to training.
Under par Bayern
Despite being their closest competitors over the last few seasons, this match marks the first occasion that Dortmund have gone into a league encounter ahead of Bayern since toward the end of the 2011/12 season.
Having lived in their shadow for so long, the hosts will see this as a golden opportunity to put genuine daylight between them and the perennial champions.
Still adapting to life under the fairly inexperienced management of Niko Kovac and faced with a debilitating injury list, the guests are certainly not the formidable foes of recent years.
Predictions
In fact, odds of 3/4 (1.75) look positively generous on Dortmund at least avoiding defeat at home to their weakened adversaries on Saturday.
Odds correct at the time of writing. Please gamble responsibly.
Dortmund to win or draw for a 2.5pt stake at 3/4 (1.75) with bet365