Bundesliga Tips: Germany superstar can start 2025 in style | OneFootball

German Bundesliga

Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen are in great form

The Bundesliga is back and our tipster Kevin Hatchard will be the Sky Sports commentator for the Friday night showdown between Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen. He has tips for that blockbuster showdown plus two other matches in his tipsheet for Matchday 16.

Wirtz to thrive under Friday night lights

Borussia Dortmund v Bayer LeverkusenFriday 10 January, 19:30Live on Sky Sports

The new year in the Bundesliga kicks off with a cracker, as the champions Bayer Leverkusen visit Borussia Dortmund. The hosts need points to keep their Champions League qualification push on track, while Bayer know a win would take them to within a point of top spot.

Leverkusen started the season in shaky fashion, and were conceding far too many goals compared to last term. However, they have improved markedly in recent months, and have won eight games in a row in all competitions. Just before the winter break they thrashed a good Freiburg side 5-1, as Patrik Schick scored four times.

Incredibly, rising star Florian Wirtz has contributed three goals and six assists in his last six league appearances, and all six of those assists have been for Schick goals. Overall, the 21-year-old has already delivered seven goals and seven assists in the league, having scored 11 and set up 11 last term. Bayer are keen to agree a new deal with the German international as soon as possible.

I fancy Wirtz to score or assist here at 11/10 on the Sportsbook. Dortmund haven't managed a clean sheet in any of their last five matches, and injuries to Waldemar Anton and Niklas Süle mean they have been asking Nico Schlotterbeck to play through the pain of an ankle injury. Emre Can is often a laboured and clumsy option at centre-back, and BVB's lack of depth in that position has been exposed.

Given the form Wirtz is in, I can see him having a positive impact on this Friday night clash.

Wolves can strike outside their lair

Hoffenheim v WolfsburgSaturday 11 January, 14:30

It's been a fluctuating rollercoaster ride for Wolfsburg fans this season under former Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhüttl. The Wolves made a poor start, recovered to go on a storming run, but lost their final two games of 2024.

There are reasons for the VW-backed club to be optimistic heading into the new year. Wolfsburg are just four points off the top six, they are still in the DFB Pokal (they'll visit RB Leipzig in the quarter-finals next month) and summer signings like keeper Kamil Grabara and striker Mohammed Amoura have settled in really nicely.

Hoffenheim have bet the farm on sporting director Andi Schicker and coach Christian Ilzer replicating the magic that delivered the Austrian league and cup double at Sturm Graz. The early signs are mixed - TSG crashed out of the DFB Pokal thanks to a 3-0 defeat at Wolfsburg, and they have gone seven matches without a win in all competitions.

It's not all doom and gloom in Sinsheim. Nigerian striker Gift Orban looks to be a really interesting pick-up from Lyon, and Czech forward Adam Hlozek has shown flashes of what he is capable of since arriving from Bayer Leverkusen. However, injuries have been a big problem, and Ilzer is yet to stabilise the team and find consistency.

I'll back Wolfsburg +0 & +0.5 on the Asian Handicap here at 1.88. That gives us a half-win if the game is drawn, and a full payout in the event of an away victory. Wolfsburg have won four of their last seven away games in the league, while TSG have won just nine of their last 25 league games on home soil. The PreZero Arena is one of the least intimidating away trips in the division.

Swabian showdown will bring us goals and corners

Augsburg v StuttgartSunday 12 January, 16:30Live on Sky Sports

Both Augsburg and Stuttgart had a strong year in 2024, but ended it in disappointing fashion. Augsburg were inexplicably thrashed 5-1 at struggling Holstein Kiel, while Stuttgart fell to a clumsy 1-0 home defeat against newly-promoted St Pauli.

There's every reason to think we'll get a fun clash between southern neighbours here. If you look at the 30 league games the teams have played between them this term, 22 of them have featured three goals or more. Neither team has been defending well this term - Augsburg keeper Nediljko Labrovic has had a really tough introduction to life in Germany, while Stuttgart have suffered from the loss of centre-backs Waldemar Anton and Hiroki Ito to Dortmund and Bayern respectively.

Seven of the last nine meetings between these two have seen three goals or more scored, and I expect a similarly fun game here. Augsburg have netted in ten of their last 15 games in the league, while Stuttgart have scored in 12 of their last 15. I'll combine Over 2.5 Goals with Over 8.5 Corners at 2.15 on the Bet Builder. Both teams' matches in the league this season are averaging above the nine corners we need for this bet to land.

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