Leipzig's GD is like an extra point. With a draw they'd still have it in their own hands to equal Freiburg's tally from the last two games. And a Gladbach lead means very little this season anyway.
Leipzig is playing Bielefeld and Augsburg in their last games. They probably have better chances than us even if the matches end nowFor some reason they left Kostic of all players in the team, but other than him and Jakic it's basically all rotation players in midfield and attack.
Anyway.. Leipzig managed to concede to Gladbach and suddenly their top four finish is in grave danger again:
Freiburg and Leverkusen face each other on final match day, so we might get a situation where Leverkusen are already qualified and could screw over their brothers.
Leverkusen needs a draw against Freiburg OR a win against a Hoffenheim side that hasn't won in 7 games. And even if they fail at that Freiburg AND Leipzig would still have to get 6 and 4 points respectively. It's nearly impossible to mess this up with current results
| Rank | Team | M | W | D | L | Goals | Diff | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bayern München (M) | 32 | 24 | 3 | 5 | 93:33 | 60 | 75 | |
| 2 | Borussia Dortmund (P) | 32 | 20 | 3 | 9 | 80:50 | 30 | 63 | |
| 3 | Bayer 04 Leverkusen | 32 | 17 | 7 | 8 | 74:44 | 30 | 58 | |
| 4 | SC Freiburg | 32 | 15 | 10 | 7 | 56:40 | 16 | 55 | |
| 5 | RB Leipzig | 32 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 67:36 | 31 | 54 | |
| 6 | 1. FC Köln | 32 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 51:46 | 5 | 52 | |
| 7 | 1. FC Union Berlin | 32 | 14 | 9 | 9 | 43:41 | 2 | 51 |
And yet Gladbach even score another goal and win 3-1.
I guess he fits the more aggressive profile Dortmund are looking for and they were linked with both him and Skhiri by some reports from Cologne a month or two ago. But I don't really see it. Özcan didn't even start for Cologne until this season was well underway. It's incredibly risky to sign players in the mid 20s, because they had a few good months for the first time in their career. Schlager and Laimer sound a lot safer on paper, even Skhiri has been performing consistently well (relatively speaking) for a long time now. On the other hand he could just be a cheap(er) replacement for Emre Can, a little gamble for depth.
At least both Shkiri and Özcan now have experience as the single DM in crazy attacking 4132 setups, where they effectively had to cover central midfield on their own, so they at least have some skills and experience at orchestrating. But I agree, neither is a real expert at this. Will be an interesting transfer summer, at least CB seems already settled now for Dortmund.
There are so many open questions it's nearly impossible to make predictions:
Would someone like Dennis Geiger at Hoffenheim fit that role? He's out of contact next year I think and I think he's a really good mix of someone who can control the game from midfield and be defensively strong.
I can't really say. I think defensive players are notoriously hard to judge fairly, unless you watch them very often and pay very close attention to them - or well - they make a lot of mistakes. But having said that: there is actually a Hoffenheim player I could see in that role, but it's Grillitsch - he's out of contract this summer and being 26 years old, he's at a good age if you want a reliable player, too. There doesn't seem to be that much interest in him though, so maybe I'm missing some glaring weakness or he's just a bit too slow.
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Not anymore...the things you do to get more lucrative tv deals. ^^
Thanks, I didn’t know. What a stupid idea.
Does not always make sense. Frankfurt and Leipzig played Thursday evening...
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Nice explanation, but there is Bochum v Bielefeld on Friday, Bayern v Stuttgart on Sunday and Hertha v Mainz on Saturday evening. Therefore Thursday‘s Europa League games cannot be the whole reason.
1-1 at halftime.
Yeah, first half was disappointing, considering Dortmund's team looks ridiculously stacked on paper, while Schalke are a bunch of nobodies in comparison. But I guess the second half rectified that mistake
Do the two clubs have some "north derby rivalry" going on between them?Can't wait for Hansa to destroy HSVs promotion dream next week
It's concerning to see how many goals Freiburg concede lately, but at the same time encouraging how little they seem to be shaken by them.
PleaseCan't wait for Hansa to destroy HSVs promotion dream next week
As fan of a big club that have their own promotion ambitions I would have expected you to be all for Hamburg fecking off to Bundesliga. The worst that could happen to promotion hopefuls would be Darmstadt winning the playoff against Stuttgart.Please
That sucks, but if Leverkusen keep losing, then a draw would be enough to leave top four in Freiburg's own hands.
You're joking, but I'm really sick and tired of Karlsruhe playing HSV, losing to a dodgy ref decision Karlsruhe is not strong enough to overcome. So I'd be pretty happy with Hamburg fecking off to Bundesliga again. But then, are you even a football fan if Schadenfreude isn't your biggest motivator?
Fair enough. And I wasn't entirely joking. Every year there is one club, who suddenly battles for promotion after finishing mid table. Who knows what club it'll be next season.
