Fresh from suffering a Champions League defeat in midweek, RB Leipzig will hope to return to winning ways when they take on VfL Bochum in the Bundesliga on Saturday.
RB Leipzig come into the against VfL Bochum on the back of a heartbreaking 3-1 loss at home to Manchester City in their most recent outing in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League in midweek.
That was just their second defeat of the season in ten matches across all competitions so far this season. And they could not have wished for a better fixture to bounce back than facing relegation-battlers VfL Bochum.
Despite the loss of a few important players in the summer, notably Josko Gvardiol, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Christopher Nkunku to Manchester City, Liverpool, and Chelsea, respectively, RB Leipzig have made an amazing start to the new season.
Just over a month after their comfortable 3-0 win over Bayern Munich in the German Super Cup, Die Roten Bullen looked to be on track to claim another victory against the Bavarian giants in their most recent Bundesliga game last Saturday, when goals from Lois Openda and Castello Lukeba put Marco Rose’s men 2-0 up inside the first 26 minutes at the Red Bull Arena.
However, Bayern salvaged a 2-2 draw thanks to second-half strikes from Harry Kane and Leroy Sane, ending Leipzig’s four-game winning streak in the top flight, and Rose’s side have subsequently slipped down to fifth in the table, albeit only three points behind table-toppers Bayer Leverkusen.
As for the visitors, they kicked off the new Bundesliga season on a decent note, with credible draws against Dortmund (1-1), Augsburg (2-2), and Eintracht Frankfurt (1-1). But the wheels have fallen off miserably in recent weeks.
Bochum have particularly struggled in the last couple of weeks, allowing ten goals in back-to-back defeats to Bayern Munich (7-0) and Borussia Monchengladbach (3-0). They now boast the worst defensive record in the competition, with 19 goals shipped in six matches, and they are one of just three winless sides in the league at the moment.
They were completely outclassed in the first half against Monchengladbach last weekend, scoring three unanswered first-half goals in front of their own fans. Although they stand little chance against Leipzig here, Bochum could take inspiration from their resilient display in this same matchup back in March this year at Vonovia Ruhrstadion, where they emerged with a narrow 1-0 victory. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
RB Leipzig
A tough night in the #UCL, but the focus turns straight away to Saturday 👊 pic.twitter.com/aDbPOGur25
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) October 4, 2023
Leipzig defender Benjamin Henrichs missed Wednesday’s Champions League defeat against Manchester City with a minor hamstring strain and is a doubt here, joining Dani Olmo, Willi Orban, and El Chadaille Bitshiabu, who are all nursing knee injuries, in the treatment room; Timo Werner, meanwhile, is doubtful with a back problem.
Due to a quick turnaround between midweek and weekend games, head coach Marco Rose could look to freshen things up with some rotation, with Benjamin Sesko, Fabio Carvalho, and Christoph Baumgartner providing forward options to come into the hosts’ starting XI.
Kevin Kampl was back available for selection in the midweek despite coming off with a hip injury in last weekend’s draw with Bayern but was not risked against Manchester City. He could come in for Nicolas Seiwald in central midfield alongside Xaver Schlager, with Baumgartner and Carvalho operating further forward as advanced midfielders.
Despite scoring five goals in nine games across all competitions so far this season, Benjamin Sesko has only started once for Leipzig, and he may start here alongside an in-form Lois Openda partnership up front.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Blaswich; Klostermann, Simakan, Lukeba, Raum; Kampl, Schlager; Baumgartner, Carvalho; Sesko, Openda
VfL Bochum
Bochum boss Thomas Letsch has a few important injury absentees for this encounter, including Matus Bero (knee), Lys Mousset (achilles tendon tear), Mohammed Tolba (ACL), Michael Esser (knee), and Moritz-Broni Kwarteng (pubic bone inflammation).
Manuel Riemann is a regular staple in between the sticks and has often been their best player, despite Bochum’s torrid form. Ivan Ordets has become a key figure in the heart of Bochum’s defence, and the aerially strong Ukrainian centre-back will be partnered by Erhan Masovic, flanked by full-backs Kostas Stafylidis and Danilo Soares.
Matus #Bero has suffered a partial rupture of the inner knee ligament. This means he’ll unfortunately be missing for the next few weeks 😞 Good and speedy recovery, Matus! 🙏 pic.twitter.com/oBvJU0Ikss
— VfL Bochum 1848 (@VfLBochum1848EN) October 4, 2023
Captain Anthony Losilla is one of the most experienced players at VfL and will have a pivotal role in central midfield, partnered by the box-to-box presence of Kevin Stoger, with the Austrian always capable of posing an attacking threat, as shown by his two goals and one assist in the Bundesliga so far this season.
Takuma Asano currently tops the goalscoring charts at VfL with three goals this season. The Japanese international is quick, clever, and tough to mark in and around the box.
Philipp Hofmann, on the other hand, is an important target in the box for the visitors due to his towering presence. He finished last season as Bochum’s top goalscorer but has yet to open his account for the current season.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Riemann; Stafylidis, Ordets, Masovic, Soares; Stoger, Losilla, Osterhage; Asano, Hofmann, Antwi-Adjei
Key Stats
- RB Leipzig are unbeaten in the Bundesliga since their defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in their campaign opener.
- The hosts are unbeaten in three home league games, scoring 10 goals while conceding three.
- RB Leipzig have won eight of the last nine meetings with Bochum.
- VfL Bochum’s -14 goal differential ranks 18th in the league, and they have conceded 19 goals, the highest in the division this season.
Player to Watch
Lois Openda
Openda has gotten off to a flying start at Leipzig after earning a move by scoring 21 goals for RC Lens in Ligue 1 last season. So far, in his debut campaign, the forward has found the back of the net five times in ten games in all competitions, representing just how quickly he has settled at his new club.
At just 23 years of age, too, the RB Leipzig man may only get better and better under Marco Rose’s management and could do some serious damage here with his mazy dribbling, turn of pace, and potency up front.
Prediction
RB Leipzig 3-1 VfL Bochum
Bochum could be heading to Leipzig at the worst possible time, with the hosts desperate to get back to winning ways after playing so well in their games against Bayern and Manchester City but not exactly getting the results they deserved.
The gulf in quality between these outfits is massive, and even with some rotation, we expect RB Leipzig to pick up a straightforward win on Saturday in front of their fans. Bochum got hammered 7-0 at Bayern recently, but this one should be a little bit respectable.
