Bochum vs Nurnberg Predictions

Bochum welcome Nurnberg to Vonovia Ruhrstadion on Monday evening, as they look to win for the first time in three league matches. The visitors are also looking to put an end to a winless run having not won any of their last three in Germany’s second division.

If Bochum’s aim this season is to improve on last season’s modest mid-table finish, then they’re not exactly going the right way about it. Monday’s hosts find themselves sat in a disappointing 16^th position, while they come into this fixture having won just one league game all season. Quite frankly, they appear to have a better chance of exiting the division via the drop than finishing in the top half.

The saving grace for Bochum is likely to be the fact that they’re tough to beat at home, even if they’ve not been able to get their noses in front. Despite not winning any of their first five matches at home, Bochum have somewhat bizarrely recorded no defeats. Such a record suggests that Monday’s hosts are sturdy, though they’re anything but having conceded 13 goals in five home games. It just so happens that they’ve offered a more than reasonable attacking threat, scoring 13.

While Bochum have specialised in draws at home, Nurnberg have done a bit of everything on the road, winning two, drawing one and losing two of their five travelling matches. Such a record is the sixth best in the division.

Like the hosts, Nurnberg have found it tough to keep teams at bay when playing on the road. Sunday’s visitors have kept two clean sheets in five away matches, but have shipped two or more in each of their other three and have rarely prevented their opponent from creating chances, which doesn’t bode well ahead of a match against a Bochum side that has scored plenty of goals at home.

Fortunately, Nurnberg have offered plenty going forward on their travels, as they’ve scored in five out of five, averaging a pleasing 2.6 goals for.

From a betting point of view, this is a tough game. Everything we’ve seen from the pair so far points towards a high-scoring game, but the market is all too aware of that. At the prices, one bet that does make slight appeal in ‘Bochum to Win & Both Teams to Score’.

Neither side has covered themselves in defensive glory this term, but it is the hosts who’ve offered that bit more going forward. They may yet be without a home win, though some strong attacking performances of late suggest that their time is near. Moreover, the visitors, who’re now without the use of both first-choice goalkeepers through injury, have struggled to create more than their opponents of late, so a small play on the hosts edging what ought to be a relatively high-scoring game is warranted.