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The dynamics of the Bayern-Wolfsburg match keeps changing with time. There was a time when a ruthless Wolfsburg led by Edin Dzeko hammered Bayern in their own den on route to winning the title.
But that was then. Since that title-winning season, Bayern have been the dominant side. The side from Munich has won league titles, cups and the Champions League while fans at the Volkswagen Arena had been deprived of success for very a long time.
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All that, however, changed last season. Some great signings, a new manager and an exciting brand of football brought success and a belief that the glory days are on their way.
Bayern did win the league title last season but without a doubt Dieter Hecking’s side were the team of the season. They won the Cup beating Dortmund in the final but the headline result was the 4-1 drubbing of the Bavarians.
The sides meet once again tomorrow night which will be their first meeting in the league this season.
Team News
Bayern Munich
Die Roten have had an impeccable start to the season with wins in all of their Bundesliga games so far but defence has been a concern and the side will surely miss Mehdi Benatia and Holger Badstuber who are out with injuries. Ribery and Robben are out with long term injuries.
VfL Wolfsburg
For the side led by Swiss goalie Diego Benaglio, the start to the season has been decent. Their most notable absentee for Tuesday night’s clash will be Portugese winger Vierinha who is quite influential down the right wing.
Kick-Off and Live Telecast
Channel: Star Sports 2
Livestream: StarSports.com
Date: 22nd September, Tuesday
Kick-off: 20:00 CET (23:30 IST)
Venue: Allianz Arena, Munich
Form
Bayern Munich
Pep Guardiola’s men have had a perfect start to the season winning all their league games and the UCL tie. The new signings have settled down really well. Douglas Costa has hit the ground running right from the start while Vidal seems settled now. Coman has integrated into the side and will be one to watch out for.
In spite of the wins, there is something the Bavarians need to worry about. Firstly, local side Augsburg had really frustrated them and they had to grind out a result in that game. Secondly, Bayern’s only blip this season has been against Hecking’s men. Wolfsburg beat Bayern to lift the German Super Cup early on in the season.
Last five games (All competitions): W-W-W-W-W (Most recent: Darmstadt 98 0-3 Bayern Munich)
VfL Wolfsburg
Three wins out of five games is a good start, but the problem with Wolfsburg has been their style of play. There appears to be a pattern in their style of play: Draxler running down the right and delivering a cross to either Bas Dost or Max Kruse. Hence, they look a bit predictable.
Last season the side dominated and scored goals on the counter, but this feature has been absent from the side this season. The departure of Belgian Kevin De Bruyne is possibly one of the reasons behind it. His replacement, World Cup winner Julian Draxler has big shoes to fill.
Last five games (All competitions): D-W-D-W-W (Most recent: Wolfsburg 2-0 Hertha Berlin)
Key Stats
- This is the second meeting between the sides this season with the Wolves beating Bayern in the Super Cup courtesy two late strikes by Nicklas Bendtner.
- Bayern have scored 15 goals in the league so far with only Borussia Dortmund scoring more than them(18)
- Wolfsburg have scored only four goals from open play this season while last season they were just behind Bayern in this category.
- Bayern have lost only one competitive game this season while Wolfsburg are still unbeaten.
- Bayern have been unbeaten in 43 games in the first half of the season which is the longest run in the league’s history.
- Dieter Hecking has collected 1.8 points per game which is the highest average for a Wolfsburg manager since Felix Magath.
Possible Line-ups
Bayern Munich
Bayern completed a routine 3-0 win over Darmstadt 98 in the weekend. But perhaps the surprise package of the win was youngster Joshua Kimmich’s performance at the heart of the midfield. However, it is highly unlikely that Guardiola will start the youngster for such a high profile game. Xabi Alonso could take his place while Philip Lahm is expected to return to the defence replacing Rafinha.
Apart from these changes, the same players are expected to start the game on Tuesday night.
Bayern’s possible line-up (4-1-4-1): Neuer, Lahm, Boateng, Alaba, Bernat, Xabi Alonso, Thiago, Vidal, Muller, Douglas Costa, Lewandowski
VfL Wolfsburg
With injuries to Vierinha and Felipe, it is likely that there will be no changes to the Wolfsburg team that overcame Hertha Berlin in the weekend. The only change could be Bas Dost replacing Nicklas Bendtner in the starting eleven. Also, Rodriguez could be coming in place of Schafer.
The focus will clearly be on Julian Draxler who was superb against Hertha Berlin.
Wolfsburg’s possible line-up (4-2-3-1): Benaglio, Trasch, Naldo, Dante, Rodriguez, Guilavogui, Luiz Gustavo, Draxler, Kruse, Schurrle, Dost.
Key Battles
Julian Draxler vs David Alaba
The Wolfsburg record signing has played a pivotal role for his team since arriving from Schalke. But it is this game that will be a real test for him. And perhaps Bayern could have a bit of a trouble in dealing with him.
Draxler operates down the right and often cuts inside and hence on numerous occasions, the Austrian Alaba will be face to face with him. The problem for Bayern here is that Alaba is not a specialist centre-back. David Alaba is a left back who loves to move forward and thus handling Draxler could be a tricky task for him.
Robert Lewandowski vs Dante
Dante’s performance throughout last season was far from good. In fact many believe that Pep Guardiola lost faith in his abilities and let him go.
Coming up against his former side, the Brazilian will have a point to prove. Dante playing as a centre-back is expected to be involved in a duel with his former teammate Robert Lewandowski.
Lewandowski had a slight injury but has passed the test and is expected to start the game. Dante along with his partner Naldo will have to be at their very best to deny this Polish poacher.
Prediction
Bayern 2-1 Wolfsburg
The good thing about this fixture is that there have always been plenty of goals and Tuesday night is expected to be the same. The last time these two sides met in the league, 5 goals were scored and Wolfsburg ran out winners. That match earlier this year was an emotional tie for the Wolfsburg players having just lost a teammate a few weeks back.
But that was a brilliant Wolfsburg side with De Bruyne playing. Since his departure along with Ivan Perisic, the side has put in good performances. Not great!
Bayern, on the other hand, have added enough firepower to their squad and are unlikely to miss Ribery and Robben. On paper, the side from Munich look the stronger of the two sides and that is expected to be the case on the field. Bayern have been dominant so far and they are expected to make their intentions clear of retaining the league title with a win over what Guardiola believes as a side that could challenge them.
Betting odds (bet365)
Bayern- 2/7
Wolfsburg- 10/1
Draw- 9/2
