Augsburg Vs Borussia Dortmund
Both these sides find themselves at the foot of the pile after slumping to opening day defeats. Dortmund were missing several players through injury but in truth were second best throughout their opening day defeat at home to Leverkusen. Although it is still very early days, Jurgen Klopp knows that a win at the SGL Arena is imperative to avoid falling further behind title rivals Bayern Munich.
As for Augsburg, they narrowly avoided relegation last season and sporting director Stefan Reuter confessed that the club’s priority this season remains surviving the drop. Despite Dortmund’s injury crisis, I still think they will grind out a victory in Augsburg.
Prediction 0-1
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Schalke 04 Vs Bayern Munich
The champions were less than convincing in their narrow 2-1 victory over Wolfsburg in the first game week and if it weren’t for Junior Malanda’s horror miss, Bayern may well have had to settle for a point. Pep Guardiola’s men face a much tougher test this weekend against a Schalke team who finished third last season. Jens Keller’s side boasted the second best home record last campaign (after Bayern themselves) and Keller is confident they can take at least a point from this game. I’m less optimistic but it will nonetheless be a close game.
Prediction 1-2
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Bayer Leverkusen vs Hertha Berlin
Karim Bellarabi scored the fastest goal in German top-flight history (after 9 seconds) to ensure Leverkusen secured a surprisingly comfortable victory away at Dortmund. Roger Schmidt will be confident his charges can continue the winning run against Hertha Berlin, who tend to struggle away from the German capital. I’m going for a home win for Bayer Leverkusen at the BayArena.
Prediction 2-1
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PSG vs Saint Etienne
PSG’s shaky start to the season continued after they failed to find a way past lowly Evian last weekend. Les Parisiens had Yohan Cabaye sent off in what was a miserable evening for the champions. Despite an array of superstars, the absence of star man Zlatan Ibrahimovic was evident and Laurent Blanc will be desperate for the return of his talisman. He will however have to wait another week as the Swede has already been ruled out for the visit of Saint Etienne to the Parc des Princes. I’m backing Edison Cavani to step up and fire PSG to victory this weekend.
Prediction 1-0
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Monaco Vs Lille
Last season’s runners-up finally got their season up and running at Nantes courtesy of a Radamel Falcao strike on the stroke of half-time. Truth be told Leonardo Jardim’s side were poor and had keeper Danijel Subasic to thank for the clean sheet following his penalty save. Monaco face yet another difficult opponent in Lille this weekend, who go into this game unbeaten thus far this season. It will be a balanced game at the Stade Louis II and for that reason I’m going for a low scoring draw.
Prediction 1-1
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Real Sociedad vs Real Madrid
Real Madrid fulfilled expectations with a comfortable home win against Cordoba. This match up could prove to be a far sterner test but the Galacticos will be brimming with confidence following Real Sociedad’s narrow away defeat to Eibar. Unfortunately they have not kept all their stars over the years and seem to be paying the price. Unlike the Premier League, it seems as though La Liga gives us some fixtures where you can only see one outcome, eliminating that element of unpredictability. I expect this match to be no different with Madrid going from strength to strength and sending a message of intent to their title rivals.
Prediction 1-4
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Villarreal vs Barcelona
I am actually really looking forward to this tie. Villarreal provided a good account of themselves away at Levante and I feel they could surprise a few pundits over the course of the year. As expected, Barcelona cruised through their first game of the season, aided by a magical goal from Lionel Messi. There is an element of uncertainty involved with the Catalan side and if Villarreal are organised they can frustrate their opponents. However, I believe Messi and co will prove to be too tough a test for Villarreal and they will narrowly lose out!
Prediction 1-2
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Atletico Madrid vs Eibar
Atletico Madrid must be wary of falling behind following one of their most impressive seasons in the history of the club. They lost some key players and it remains to be seen whether the current crop of stars can maintain that high level of play. Eibar will be delighted with their first game of the season, securing the three points against Real Sociedad. Atletico will be fuming at their bore draw in their opening game and will be looking to give their passionate home fans something to cheer about. I do believe that they will simply have too much for Eibar and will be clear and deserved winners.
Prediction 3-0
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Valencia vs Malaga
As football fans we are blessed with great football each day of the week. Friday Nights Match of the day matches up two sides who are aiming to prove a point in La Liga. Malaga and Valencia were both satisfied with their opening day results and will enter the Mestalla Stadium full of confidence. Malaga would probably settle for a point against a side who have invested a fair amount and look like a new side altogether. My money is on a score-draw with Malaga just grinding out a point following a nervy ending for the away side.
Prediction 1-1