German Bundesliga - Hertha Berlin vs. Augsburg - Preview & Prediction
By Valdis Pans
Resurging Hertha Berlin have gone unbeaten for five straight fixtures and will be hoping to collect more points while hosting Augsburg, who sit just four points above the bottom three. Kick-off - at 9:30 AM ET on Saturday, May 30.
Hertha Berlin Draw In Leipzig
Hertha Berlin’s brilliant form under new head coach Bruno Labbadia continued, as the team remained unbeaten under its new manager (W2 D1) after snatching a 2-2 draw against RB Leipzig away at Red Bull Arena on Wednesday. Substitute Krzysztof Piatek was the hero of the day, burying a penalty with just eight minutes remaining on the clock after two consecutive strikes by the hosts canceled out Marko Grujic’s 9th-minute opener. The Old Lady has gone without a defeat for five straight games (W2 D3) and currently sits 10th in the league with a W9 D8 L11 record, eight points above the bottom-three, trailing the top-six by seven points.
Forwards Dodi Lukebakio and Vedad Ibisevic lead Hertha Berlin with six and five strikes respectively. Goalie Rune Jarstein, meanwhile, occupies the 3rd position in the league with 91 saves, having also recorded seven clean sheets in 24 appearances this season. He allows a goal every 54 minutes on average. The Old Lady, meanwhile, has netted the 8th the highest quantity of goals so far this year (41), while averaging the 2nd lowest amount of shots per game (11.1). The team is 13th in ball possession (47.0%) and 11th in passing accuracy (77.5%).
Augsburg Share Points With Paderborn
Two teams, battling for survival in the Bundesliga for another shot at top tier soccer next year failed to gain any advantage in their respective relegation fights, as Augsburg ended up sharing points with rock-bottom Paderborn, playing out a scoreless draw at WWK Arena on Wednesday. Die Fuggerstadter led in ball possession (55%), while the visitors had the most shots (15-12) and looked the most likely to score. As it stands, Augsburg have gone unbeaten for two straight games (W1 D1) after posting four consecutive defeats prior, and are 12th in the league (W8 D7 L13), sitting just four points above the bottom three.
With 11 goals and six assists so far this term, forward Florian Niederlechner leads Die Fuggerstadter in scoring, having had direct involvement in 43% of Augsburg’s 40 markers this season. Goalie Andreas Luthe, meanwhile, sits 29th in the Bundesliga with 13 saves in five appearances, having also posted two clean sheets. He gives up a goal every 90 minutes of play. Augsburg is 9th in most goals scored this year (40), the bottom of the league in shots taken (10.8 per game), as well as the absolute worst in ball possession (40.5%) and passing accuracy (69.5%).
Prediction
Hertha Berlin have been a joy to watch in their last three games under new manager Bruno Labbadia and are set for another positive result when hosting Augsburg, who have struggled tremendously lately. Die Fuggerstadter is unbeaten in two straight games (W1 D1) but managed to thrash out-of-form Schalke 04 and just drew with rock-bottom Paderborn, with four prior results all being defeats. The Old Lady did lose 4-0 to Augsburg in this season’s reverse fixture in November but had gone unbeaten in nine head-to-head encounters prior (W4 D5). The very last four meetings between the two sides, take note, all produced at least four goals.
Best bets:
Hertha Berlin to win (-110)
Over 3.5 goals (+175)
