VfL Bochum – VfL Wolfsburg
The 13th matchday in the Bundesliga is coming up this weekend. The Saturday conference has four exciting games in store for fans. There will be a VfL duel in the Ruhrpott. VfL Bochum, who are at home there, will face their namesake from the car city of Wolfsburg. Find out which VfL will secure the three-pointer on Saturday in our Bochum – Wolfsburg betting tip.
Bochum’s run of four games without defeat in the Bundesliga is set to continue on Saturday. The last home defeat for the men from Castroper Straße came in September.
Their upcoming opponents from Wolfsburg, meanwhile, are coming off a 2:1 win against RB Leipzig. However, the Wolves have yet to find their form away from home. The win in Cologne on matchday 2 gave the Lower Saxons their only points away from home so far
Bochum – Wolfsburg Info:
- Date & Time: 02.12.2023, 3:30 pm
- Playing venue: Vonovia Ruhrstadion, Bochum
- Competition: Bundesliga, Matchday 13
- TV broadcast: Sky
Bochum Form & Balance Check
The fans at Castroper Straße are happy about every single game in which their VfL is allowed to compete in the German top flight and not in the 2nd Bundesliga. Bochum are currently in the Bundesliga for the third season in a row and are not in a relegation place this season either.
Nevertheless, coach Thomas Letsch’s team have only managed ten points so far and are in 14th place, with Mainz 05 in the relegation places just two points behind Bochum. In the previous week, VfL were held to an uneventful 0-0 draw in their basement clash with Heidenheim, which was Bochum’s seventh draw of the season
Weak chance conversion
In contrast to the previous two matchdays, VfL Bochum are now also improving in terms of their play. Especially in the two home games against Cologne and Mainz, the men from Castroper Straße have recently created a number of scoring chances.
However, VfL’s exploitation of chances has been a huge problem this season. With eleven goals, Bochum have the second-worst offense in the entire top flight. In addition, the team from the deep west scored 7.5 goals less than their xG value would suggest. A greater difference cannot be found in the entire Bundesliga
Bochum facts & analysis
- Not yet won a game at home
- Played 0:0 in Heidenheim the previous week
- In 14th place in the Bundesliga
Wolfsburg Form & Balance Check
In the previous season, VfL Wolfsburg battled for a long time to qualify for international competitions, but fell just short of this goal. Under the direction of coach Niko Kovac, the Wolves are aiming for an even higher position in the Bundesliga this season. The start to the season was initially promising, as the club from Lower Saxony picked up twelve points from their first six games.
However, VfL Wolfsburg increasingly faltered in the latter stages. Between matchday seven and eleven, the Wolves scored just one point, plummeting from 7th to 11th place in the table. However, the team from Lower Saxony fought back to win against Leipzig in the previous week and climbed to eighth place
Final stop Casteels
Koen Casteels has 99 wins in his Bundesliga career to date. Of these, 86 are with VfL Wolfsburg, eleven with 1899 Hoffenheim and two during his time at Werder Bremen. Against Bochum, the Belgian would naturally now like to complete 100. For this dream to come true, however, VfL Wolfsburg will need another strong performance from the 31-year-old.
Casteels would probably like to repeat his performance from the previous week, as Wolfsburg’s number one kept the win safe for the Wolves against Leipzig. RB managed a total of nine shots on goal and an xG value of 3.11 in this game, but still only managed one goal
Wolfsburg facts & analysis
- Last five away defeats in a row
- In 8th place in the Bundesliga
- Won 2:1 against Leipzig in the previous week
Predicted line-up – last update on November 30, 2023
Bochum will line up in a 4-3-3 again and will also be able to call on coach Letsch, who was ill at the start of the week. Goalkeeper Riemann will also be back in the box for Bochum after suffering from rib problems.
VfL Wolfsburg will again start with a 3-4-3. The Wolves will still be without the injured Maehle, Wimmer and Nmecha at the weekend. Captain Maximilian Arnold will once again be on the bench
Bochum – Wolfsburg head-to-head & stats
In the history of the two clubs, there have been 31 meetings in competitive matches. The visitors from Wolfsburg have been victorious 13 times, while Bochum have won 14. In the previous season, however, the Wolves won both games with a goal difference of 9:1
- Bochum have won just one of their last eight games against Wolfsburg
- Did you know that Bochum score 27% of their goals between the 16-30 minute mark?
- The two teams are separated by seven points in the league
