Bayern Munich showcased their resilience and firepower in a thrilling UEFA Champions League match against Manchester United, prevailing 4-3 in a pulsating encounter. Manager Thomas Tuchel, who was banned from the touchline, hailed the victory as a significant boost to his team’s growing self-belief and development. Bayern Munich has been on an upward trajectory, enjoying an unbeaten run of five games (four wins and one draw) since their surprising 3-0 defeat to RB Leipzig in the DFL-Supercup last month.
Leipzig stands out as the only team to have defeated Bayern at the Allianz Arena in the Bundesliga since January 2022. During this period, Bayern Munich has amassed an impressive record of 17 wins and eight draws at home, underlining their formidable home advantage. Notably, the Bavarians haven’t dropped points in successive home league matches since January 2023. Therefore, it’s no surprise that Germany’s perennial champions are overwhelming favorites in this encounter.
Recent head-to-head history between Bayern Munich and Bochum suggests that fans may witness another goal-filled spectacle. In each of the last five home meetings with Bochum, Bayern Munich has scored three or more goals, highlighting their offensive prowess.
For VfL Bochum, the task ahead appears daunting as they have yet to secure a win in the Bundesliga this season, registering three draws and one loss. However, their ability to bounce back from a demoralizing 5-0 defeat to Stuttgart on the opening day of the season with three consecutive draws is viewed as a positive by manager Thomas Letsch. Letsch expressed his satisfaction with his team’s recent performances, although he is understandably disappointed that they haven’t translated those performances into wins. Nonetheless, Bochum’s current points tally represents an improvement over the previous season when they had no points after four rounds (four losses).
If Thomas Letsch aims to guide his team to further progress, improving their away form is imperative. Last season, only relegated Hertha Berlin accumulated fewer away points than Bochum (nine points – two wins, three draws, and 12 losses). Their away struggles were particularly pronounced against the top three teams from the previous campaign—Bayern, Borussia Dortmund, and Leipzig—where they suffered aggregate defeats of 10-0.
In terms of players to watch, Mathys Tel has been a reliable scorer for Bayern Munich. Impressively, he has notched each of his last seven competitive goals for the club in the final 15 minutes, with three of them coming in stoppage time. On the other side, Takuma Asano has been Bochum’s primary goal threat this season, with all three of his competitive goals arriving in away matches.
A noteworthy statistic is that three of the last four head-to-head meetings between Bayern Munich and Bochum have produced four or more goals in the first half, indicating the potential for early fireworks in this Bundesliga clash. Bayern Munich’s dominance and Bochum’s determination set the stage for an intriguing battle between two teams with contrasting fortunes and ambitions in the German top flight.