Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the Bundesliga match.
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach have been the picture of consistency in recent years — never dropping too low, but rarely challenging at the top either. Coaching changes haven’t disrupted them much, with three head coaches in four years, but Gerardo Seoane has brought a measure of continuity, now entering his third season. Pre-season and the DFB-Pokal suggested more of the same: high-scoring games. In all six of their summer matches (including the Cup), at least one side scored two or more goals, and four finished with over 2.5 goals.
Hamburg
Hamburg begin life back in the top flight under 34-year-old Merlin Polzin, who earned promotion after years working inside the club and stepping up when Steffen Baumgart was dismissed in November. Within a month, he’d lost the interim tag and led HSV back to where they belong. The challenge now is survival. Finances are tight, with the club’s biggest signing just €2.5m on Rayan Philippe, who netted 14 times in the 2. Bundesliga last season. Whether he can deliver at a higher level remains to be seen, but Hamburg were entertaining in attack last year: their final seven league games all went over 2.5 goals, and three of their five pre-season fixtures did the same.
Borussia Mönchengladbach vs Hamburg Prediction
Both sides have a recent trend for open, attacking football, and the statistics strongly point to another high-scoring encounter here.
