German Bundesliga
2011-05-07 - Vfb Stuttgart vs Hannover 96
A Sports Betting Pick by Niko
Football ; Germany : Bundesliga
Mercedes Benz Arena
Saturday, 07th May 2011- kickoff 15:30
Vfb Stuttgart
Vfb Stuttgart made a giant step towards their Bundesliga survival last weekend when they beat 2-1 away 1899 Hoffenheim and now, mathematically they are just one point short of definitive safety in the league.
They will face a very tough opponent against who they lost the first match of the season with 2-1, but i am certain that Vfb Stuttgart will stay in the league even if they lose this match.
Vfb Stuttgart look like a new team in this second part of the season, and since coach Bruno Labbadia took over this team few months ago, they play really nice and fluid football. Proof of their good form are the six wins, two draws and just one loss in the last nine Bundesliga matches.
Vfb Stuttgart will play in 4-2-3-1 formation with Cacau as only striker, but interestingly there are two very important players that no one would have thought they will be the best team scorers this season-the defensive midfielder Zdravko Kuzmanovic and the winger Martin Harnik have both scored nine goals each, so this team really has an all-round quality players.
Cristian Molinaro (torn muscle), Johan Audel (rehab after knee surgery) and Timo Gebhart (rehab after ankle operation) are the players unavailable for selection.
Probable Vfb Stuttgart line-up :
Boulahrouz, Tasci, Niedermeier, Boka,
Trasch, Kuzmanovic,
Harnik, Hajnal, Okazaki,
Cacau
Hannover 96
Hannover 96 will probably have to settle for a place in the Europa League after they unexpectedly lost 1-0 to Borussia M`Gladbach last weekend.
In any case, this will be by far the best season Hannover 96 have ever had and if they manage to keep the players they have and add two or three quality players in the squad , then they can challenge for the Champions League places nest season as well.
Hannover 96 plays nice attacking football and they have managed total of 18 wins this season so far which is a huge success having on mind that the year before, this team have saved their Bundesliga status in the last round of the season.
Didier Ya Konan (13 goals) and Mohammed Abdellaoue (10 goals) form one of the best attacking duos in the league so they will take their places in the starting line up once again.
There are no reports of significant team players being injured or suspended for this match.
Probable Hannover 96 line-up :
Cherundolo, Haggui, Pogatetz, C. Schulz,
Schmiedebach, Pinto, Stindl, Rausch,
Ya Konan, Abdellaoue
The Betting Verdict
An interesting fact is that in the last four decades, Hannover 96 had managed only one win at Vfb Sttutgart (in the year 2007) and there were twelve wins for Vfb Stuttgart and only one draw in that time period.
Vfb Stuttgart are practically safe, they need just one point to be sure and Hannover 96 are still in pursuit for the third place, but i doubt that they will reach it.
This should be an open match in which both teams will go for the three points and having on mind that both Vfb Stuttgart and Hannover 96 are highly attacking teams i expect to see at least three goals scored in this match. Betting on over 2.5 goals is the call here, and this match can go either way with both clubs being in good form.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Vfb Stuttgart 2-2 Hannover 96
BEST BETTING TIP :
Take Over 2.5 goals to be scored in this match
