Matchday 2 of the 2022/23 Bundesliga season goes down this weekend. On Saturday afternoon, with have an intriguing clash between RB Leipzig host FC Koln to get our teeth into.
Koln kicked off their campaign with a 3-1 victory over Schalke. Consequently, they sit fourth in the early standings.
New week, new focus 👊Köln will visit Leipzig this Saturday 🔜🔴⚪ #WeAreLeipzig pic.twitter.com/eDuvgwhlKz— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) August 8, 2022
New week, new focus 👊Köln will visit Leipzig this Saturday 🔜🔴⚪ #WeAreLeipzig pic.twitter.com/eDuvgwhlKz
Meanwhile, Leipzig were held to a 1-1 draw by Stuttgart – meaning they find themselves two points behind Koln.
Despite racking up 68% possession and 28 shots – nine of which were on target – Leipzig failed to find a winning goal on the opening weekend.
Christopher Nkunku opened the scoring after just eight minutes, but Naouirou Ahamada equalised for Stuttgart midway through the first half.
Still, it is worth noting that Leipzig have lost just four of their previous 24 encounters across all competitions.
Better still, the Red Bulls have scored at least one goal in each of their past 15 outings. For that reason, they shouldn’t struggle to find the back of the net on Saturday.
On the flip side, Koln beat Schalke 3-1 – thanks to goals from Luca Kilian, Florian Kainz and Dejan Ljubicic.
Although the Billy Goats enjoyed 76% possession and 32 shots, it is worth pointing out that Schalke played the majority of the game with ten men after Dominick Drexler’s early red card.
That said, Koln have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their previous ten games across all competitions.
Given that over 2.5 goals have been scored in each of Koln’s past four away games, we should see a high-scoring encounter this weekend.
Head-to-head: Leipzig and Koln have faced each other on ten occasions over the years, with Koln winning just twice.
Seven of the ten meetings have dished up over 2.5 goals, adding to the notion that Saturday’s clash will be a high-scoring affair.
Team news: Leipzig will be without forward Yussuf Poulsen on Saturday as he continues to recover from a muscle injury.
Koln also have injury absentee at the moment, with winger Dimitrios Limnios sidelined due to a cruciate ligament rupture.
If the recent meetings between Leipzig and Koln are anything to go by, Saturday’s clash should be an eventful encounter.
Forebet predicts that both teams will score over 1.5 goals. As for the result, a draw looks like the most probable outcome.