There are only six games left of this Bundesliga season but there’s a lot to play for at both ends. At the top, the title will be Bayern’s but Leverkusen, Leipzig, Freiburg and Hoffenheim are all battling it out for fourth. At the bottom, with Fürth all but down, it’s a three-way clash between Hertha, Stuttgart and Bielefeld to find out who joins them and who will face the relegation playoff.
Robert Lewandowski and Erling Haaland are not available for selection in our weekly picks as always (not that that’s been a bad thing lately!), just to keep things interesting.
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Goalkeepers
Manuel Riemann (6.1m), Marcel Lotka (1.0m)
I’m sorry Manuel. I really am. Please forgive me. The Bochum stopper has been a mainstay of this side for a lot of the season but one of the first weeks he is passed over for consideration, he grabs the highest ever score for a keeper in Bundesliga Fantasy (26). He got one assist but was unlucky that his pass for Takuma Asano’s second didn’t count for one too. Bochum have conceded just 14 goals in 14 home games, joint-third lowest in the league behind Mainz and Bayern. This Bayer Leverkusen team aren’t the same without Florian Wirtz and also take quite a high volume of shots (fifth-highest in the league).
With Alexander Schwolow out injured indefinitely, budget keeper Marcel Lotka should start between the posts for Hertha in Saturday evening’s Berlin derby. He’s cheap and playing against a Union side who don’t score many goals, while Hertha have looked better since Felix Magath and Mark Fotheringham came into the club.
Defenders
Silvan Widmer (7.7m), Ramy Bensebaini (10.8m), Angelino (15.5m), Borna Sosa (11.7m), Nico Schlotterbeck (10.4m)
The fourth-highest scoring defender in Bundesliga Fantasy Silvan Widmer has been a top-quality under-the-radar pick all season. Neither Köln nor Mainz come into their meeting in great form but Köln have some key injuries across the pitch that swings it in Mainz’s favour. Widmer is a constant threat down the right flank for Mainz.
Gladbach are unbeaten in three games ahead of their visit to Greuther Fürth on Saturday. Ramy Bensebaini has been a key figure for the Foals all season and seems to have claimed the left wing-back spot as his own. The Moroccan international is one of Gladbach’s key attacking outlets ahead of their tie against the worst defence in the league, who have also scored the second-least goals.
Angelino is averaging over ten points per game in his last five (51 points), as he looks to be rediscovering his electric form of last season. The Spaniard is a key piece in Domenico Tedesco’s side, who have the best record in the Bundesliga since the turn of the year. Leipzig host a Hoffenheim outfit struggling for form after shock losses to Hertha Berlin and Bochum, whilst Die Roten Bullen haven’t lost at home since MD17.
Stuttgart are unbeaten in their last four games and Dortmund have looked unimpressive of late, not least during the 4-1 battering by Leipzig last weekend. Borna Sosa is another defender in extraordinary form, with 55 points from his last five games. Whilst Sosa won’t have Sasa Kalajdzic to aim at this evening after he was ruled with Covid-19, the Croatian will likely be afforded plenty of space by Dortmund’s, ahem, *suspect* defence.
Despite their exceptional performance last night in the Europa League, Frankfurt’s domestic form has been average, especially going forward. Nico Schlotterbeck is still the highest-scoring defender in Bundesliga Fantasy with four goals, nine clean sheets and 102 points for duels won. Schlotterbeck should be in a great position to continue adding to those numbers against Frankfurt on Sunday.
Midfielders
Kerem Demirbay (13.3m), Florian Neuhaus (12.9m), Jude Bellingham (14.3m), Christopher Nkunku (19.6m), Leon Goretzka (14.1m)
Since Florian Wirtz was ruled out for the rest of the season, Kerem Demirbay has taken over his role in attacking midfield for Leverkusen. The set-piece wizard has 25 points from his last two games and grabbed an assist against Wolfsburg. He has a high points ceiling, given his set-piece responsibilities, so is a safe pick for the clash with Bochum.
Florian Neuhaus got an assist and 14 points in MD28, which sets him up perfectly for his side’s visit to Fürth this time out. Gladbach have been improving of late and Neuhaus should be afforded plenty of space and opportunities against the bottom-placed side.
Although Stuttgart are improving, their defence is still leaky. With three goals and seven assists already this season, Jude Bellingham is a great option to take advantage of that. Bellingham also has the second-most duels won of any midfielder (340), which has brought in 56 points.
Christopher Nkunku plays, so Christopher Nkunku is in this team. It is as easy as that.
Leon Goretzka was benched for Bayern’s UCL loss in midweek, so should be fresh and ready when Augsburg come to town. He averages nine points per appearance when fit this season and, last time out, scored in his first appearance back after injury. Although Augsburg have had a few good wins recently, they’re still a long way off the perennial champions and Goretzka could have a field day.
Forwards
Taiwo Awoniyi (9.4m), Alassane Plea (15.4m), Max Kruse (14.2m)
I trusted Taiwo Awoniyi with selection in last week’s squad and he delivered, therefore the Nigerian is back in for MD29. Union face improving city rivals Hertha but their opponents still have a long way to go and should give Awoniyi plenty of chances. After a poor start to the Rückrunde, Awoniyi now has three goals from his last five Bundesliga games.
The joint-highest scoring forward over the last five games with Marco Reus, Alassane Plea has been Gladbach’s talisman since returning to the starting XI against Bielefeld in MD21. In that time, he has four goals and four assists, which sets him up well for Gladbach’s visit to Fürth.
Wolfsburg have been terrible recently, especially in last weekend’s 3-0 loss to Augsburg. They host an Arminia Bielefeld side who have been even worse – winless in their last five, having only scored once. If Wolfsburg are to take advantage of this, they will rely on Max Kruse to do so. Kruse has scored twice since returning to the Volkswagen Arena, is on penalties and will hope to add to that tally this weekend.
