Bochum will be looking to end Bayern Munich’s winning streak when the two teams meet at the Vonovia Ruhrstadion on Sunday.
Bochum have lost the fewest number of games at this stage of a Bundesliga season (7) since they finished fifth in 2003/04. However, their league-high number of draws (10) has contributed to their lowly 14th place position.
Two of those ten draws have come in their last two outings, and the draw conceded last weekend against Frankfurt is a result that the vast majority of fans would gladly take against Bayern Munich.
Not only because the visitors are 11-time consecutive Bundesliga champions, but also because Bochum have lost 7-0 to them in three of their five meetings since returning to the top flight. These are unsurprisingly Bochum’s heaviest defeats in the Bundesliga, but there is great hope that such a humiliation will not be repeated as no team has beaten Bochum at home since September (3v, 4n).
Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel is under immense pressure as the German club head into this matchday five points off the top.
Tuchel needs to bounce back with a win here, as he could crack under the pressure if his men fail to produce results domestically, having had reduced preparation time due to their 1-0 Champions League defeat to Lazio on Wednesday.
It is rare that Bayern Munich are said to be lacking bite in attack, but they have failed to score in two of their last five Bundesliga outings – as many as in the previous 153 games! However, if the history of this fixture is anything to go by, Bayern are unlikely to blank again, having not failed to score at Bochum in over two decades, winning nine and losing one since then.
Players to watch: Moritz Broschinski has recorded the best Flashscore rating in Bochum’s last two games, scoring the team’s only goal in both draws (1-1). The reverse fixture was a significant day for Bayern talisman Harry Kane, as that 7-0 win saw him net the first of his three Bundesliga hat-tricks in his debut season (BUN: 24 goals).
Hot stat: Heading into this matchday, Bochum are one of only three Bundesliga teams to have scored in all of their home league games this season.
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