Bundesliga: Wolfsburg Out to End Decade-Long Winless Drought at Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund vs VfL Wolfsburg

It has been seven long years since Wolfsburg last defeated Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga and almost a decade since their last win at Dortmund.

But BVB have been so inconsistent this season and also have injury concerns at the moment, so Wolfsburg have a decent shot to finally end their long winless drought against Borussia Dortmund this weekend.

However, the Bundesliga 2022 betting odds will still back Dortmund to extend their dominance over the Wolves, who also haven’t been in the best of form this year.

Talking Points

Up-and-down Dortmund dealing with more injuries

Despite being safely in second behind Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund have had another disappointing season. Once again BVB’s league form has been much too inconsistent; they’ve won just three of their last six games, with two draws – away to middling Augsburg and Koln – and a shock 4-1 defeat to Leipzig in their first home game with a full stadium this season.

Dortmund did bounce back with a 2-0 win away at Stuttgart last time out. Julian Brandt came on early after Gio Reyna suffered another injury setback and scored a brace – his first goals since December.

Erling Haaland set up Brandt’s second goal as he looked sharper in just his second game back from a long injury layoff. Haaland has not scored in his last five Bundesliga appearances, with some speculating that his subpar form is due to the continued speculation about his future.

But while Haaland is back healthy, Dortmund have a few injury concerns to deal with. Reyna has been ruled out for the remainder of the season after his latest injury. Meanwhile, midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud and veteran defender Mats Hummels, who also got injured against Stuttgart, are expected to miss out against Wolfsburg.

Emre Can, who played at right-back against Stuttgart, could move in back to the middle to partner Manuel Akanji at centre-back. Marco Rose could also bring in Dan-Axel Zagadou if he reverts to a back three.

Wolfsburg’s top attacking weapon returning to form

Wolfsburg have taken quite a fall this season. After a fantastic fourth-place finish last term under Oliver Glasner, the Wolves are down in 13th this season. Coach Florian Kohfeldt has been unable to turn things around after taking over from Marc van Bommel in October as the Wolves even flirted with relegation.

Although, Wolfsburg did beat relegation strugglers Arminia Bielefeld 4-0 last weekend to snap a three-game losing skid. Lukas Nmecha scored a brace as he got his first goals of the calendar year.

The 23-year-old is the team’s leading scorer this season with eight goals despite missing more than three months with an ankle injury. His absence has been a big part of Wolfsburg’s poor Bundesliga 2022 results, especially after selling Wout Weghorst in the winter.

Nmecha is finally returning to top form after the international break and will look to provide Wolfsburg with another attacking threat besides veteran Max Kruse.

However, the Wolfsburg defence that was so key to their success last season has slipped significantly. They have already conceded 45 goals in 29 games, eight more than the entirety of last season.

The Wolves have also had massive struggles away from home. They have won just one of their last 10 away matches in all competitions, with seven defeats. Their lone win came against former coach Glasner’s Eintracht Frankfurt in February.

History

Recent history will be heavily against Wolfsburg in this matchup. Dortmund are unbeaten in their last 13 league meetings against the Wolves, with 12 wins.

Dortmund beat Wolfsburg 3-1 in their first meeting this season, extending their current win streak over the Wolves to seven games. Wolfsburg took a shock lead after an early Weghorst goal, but Dortmund rallied with three unanswered goals from Emre Can (from the penalty spot), Donyell Malen, and Haaland.

Coincidentally, Weghorst’s goal snapped Wolfsburg’s incredible run of nine games without a goal against BVB.

 Wolfsburg’s last win over Dortmund away from home came back in 2012.

Betting Tip 

SBOTOP odds have Borussia Dortmund priced as big 1.49 favourites to continue their home dominance over Wolfsburg, who have 6.20 odds to get the win. Meanwhile, a draw is 4.30.

After getting humiliated by RB Leipzig in their first game with a full house at Signal Iduna Park, Borussia Dortmund will be keen to put on a much better performance in front of their home fans.

Luckily for them, Wolfsburg seem to be the perfect opportunity for them to get such a performance. The overwhelming historical dominance aside, Haaland’s presence should push BVB to another big win over the Wolves.

 

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