Borussia M’gladbach vs Schalke preview

May 2, 2013
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

Schalke vs GladbachAs the race for the final Champions League berth hots up, Borussia M’gladbach search for a victory that would see them revive their top 4 bid.

Schalke are currently three points clear of their top 4 rivals and they now aim to build on the 4-1 triumph over Hamburg achieved last weekend.

Borussia M’gladbach have progressed a great deal under Lucien Favre, who transformed the team from relegation strugglers to genuine top table side.

While they couldn’t reach Champions League group stages, die Fohlen were showing some promise in Europa League, but were eventually eliminated by Lazio in the first knockout stage.

Meanwhile, their Bundesliga campaign haven’t progressed according to plan, with three straight defeats on the road seriously hurting their European bid.

Nevertheless, having won last three home matches without conceding a goal in the process, die Fohlen are 3.66 (24/9) with Betfair to make it four on the bounce.

Midfielder Havard Nordtveit is doubtful with a bout of flu, but Thorben Marx is ready to deputize in holding midfield if needed.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-2-2): ter Stegen – Jantschke, Strancz, Dominguez, Daems – Marx, Xhaka – Herrmann, Arango – Hanke, Mlapa.

For the second time in last three years, Schalke have reached the Champions League knockout stages, but they somewhat failed to live up to the expectations, having been eliminated by Galatasaray.

Team’s European campaign did put a strain on their domestic performances, but in spite of some unexpected slip-ups the Miners seem to have returned to the right track.

Three wins in last five league games ensured Jens Keller’s side remained in the driving seat for the final Champions League berth and they now have a match point against Borussia M’gladbach.

Despite winning just two of last eleven away games in the league, Schalke are 2.15 (23/20) favourites with Coral to win in Monchengladbach.

After marking his return to the side with a hat-trick against Hamburg, Klaas Jan Huntelaar is 1.91 (10/11) with William Hill to score against Borussia as well.

Marco Hoger is back from suspension, but Christoph Metzelder, Jefferson Farfan, Chinedu Obasi, Ciprian Marica, Kyriakos Papadopoulos and Ibrahim Afellay remain in the infirmary.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Hildebrand – Uchida, Howedes, Marip, Kolasinac – Neustadter, Jones – Bastos, Raphael, Draxler – Huntelaar.

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