Bundesliga: Schalke vs. Hertha Berlin Odds, Preview, Predictions

Bundesliga round 28 opens with a clash between two relegation battlers as Schalke hosts Hertha Berlin. These two units are at the bottom of the standings, and their future isn’t looking too bright for the moment. However, a lot depends upon this event, and whoever wins will improve the situation. As for the losers, they will be on their way toward the second tier. We don’t have anything new to say about Schalke and Hertha; they play ugly and dull football without too much quality and truly deserve to find themselves near the bottom of the Bundesliga. 

Preview

Schalke (+130) is a mild favorite. The bookies count on the home-court advantage, with the Miners winning 13 of their 21 points at home. Still, that’s a very poor record and if we add that the team from Gelsenkirchen has the worst attack in the league at home with 14 goals scored in 14 events and the worst defense with 31 conceded hits, everything becomes clear. 

The Miners are without a goal in the past two events, losing at home to Bayern Leverkusen, 0-3, and then on the road in Hoffenheim, 2-0. Their last victory came in early March once they defeated Bochum on the road, 0-2, and after that, we saw them posting two draws before losing those two events.

The past three of their events at Veltins Arena all saw over 2.5 hits. 

Hertha Berlin (+310) has just one point more than Schalke and is four steps behind Bochum, the first team above the relegation zone. The German Old Lady didn’t win in the past five events, posting three losses and two draws throughout that span. 

The situation is terrible when looking at Hertha’s results away from Berlin, with them not winning in the last 11 trips outside the German capital. A vast majority of those events ended with them losing – 8, and in the last six, they’ve conceded 18 times. 

Hertha is the worst road unit in the entire Bundesliga, winning only five points of the possible 39, with a goal difference of 12-29.

Latest News

Leo Greiml and Moritz Jenz are a game-time decision. Kenan Karaman, Soichiro Kozuki, Jere Uronen, Sebastian poter and Justin Heekeren are all out.

Hertha can’t count on Jean-Paul Boetius, Chidera Ejuke and Kelian Nsona, who are all injured and will be sidelined for some time.

Head to Head Games

Herta won the first meeting of the year, 2-1, in Berlin. After Tousart’s goal shortly into the second half, Mollet leveled five minutes before the end, and Kanga scored a game-winner in the 88th minute. The last four direct encounters were with three or more hits. 

Predictions

Hertha’s road performances are terrible, but on the other side, we have Schalke, who is equally horrendous. This game carries a massive significance, and we will go here with moderate efficiency, meaning two or three goals. The odds here are +100, which is not bad at all, giving this pick a high value. First of all the defenses are bad, but the respective offenses are sluggish too, and on top of that, both head coaches will be careful, which will slow down the pace. An ideal scenario for 2 or 3 hits.

Pick: 2 or 3 goals +100