Runaway leaders Bayern to blast in a glut of goals
Friday night in the German Bundesliga will see bottom versus top at the Sportpark Ronhof, with newly promoted Greuther Fürth taking on the might and swagger of Bayern Munich in the sixth gameweek of the 2021/2022 campaign. The hosts have had a tough time adjusting to the top tier, conceding 13 in the previous five, and their opponents swatted Bochum aside last week by a 7-0 scoreline. These polarising factors combine to make it difficult to see past another shellacking. Read our preview here:
Green horns
Having led Kleeblätter to the promised land in May, head coach Stefan Leitl has rolled the dice in the loan market, bringing in a bevy of temporary faces to the new boys in an attempt to prevent an immediate return to the second tier. However, they have yet to have the desired effect, and the defence have been under severe pressure from the get-go. The 4-4-2 shape ostensibly is there to ensure that the turnover in possession happens higher up the pitch than might be the case otherwise. Jetro Willems has been handy down the left flank in more positive news, which hasn't been reflected just yet on the opposite wing. Julian Green, capped 15 times by USMNT, has had an interesting career full of peaks and troughs, but hasn't performed up to standard this term. Inconsistency has plagued him since bursting onto the scene with Greuther's opponents' reserves eight years ago, and he will have to hope that Alphonso Davies is constantly streaking forward to have any joy whatsoever from open play.
The Sabitzer between his teeth
FC Hollywood are of course stacked with talent, with even the younger members on the roster almost always full internationals already. Perhaps one of the more under-the-radar acquisitions (if such a concept exists at one of the world's biggest clubs) has been Marcel Sabitzer from domestic rivals RB Leipzig. The 27 year old Austrian dynamo has long been one of the division's most consistent performers, and his presence on the right hand side of an attacking midfield trio is both an anchor in terms of letting teammates underlap him, and ensuring that the fluidity present throughout Julian Nagelsmann's likely XI isn't at the cost of reorganising quickly on the odd occasions possession is conceded in the final third.
Four, four, five
Despite Robert Lewandowski's ridiculous goal record, Bayern are of course far from reliant on any single player for their scoring output, and it's that spread that makes them so dangerous to play against. Greuther are simply going to be the latest side to feel the heat, with Casumo offering odds of 3.10 for FCB to grab five or more goals on the road.
