Wolfsburg - Schalke 04 Game comments

DFB Liga Pokal: Wolfsburg vs Schalke 04

Volkswagen Arena will be the battlefield for the one of the matches between Bundesliga clubs in the DFB Pokal 1/8 finals. Wolfsburg will host Schalke trying to eliminate the favourites and earn quarterfinals. It will not be easy for Wolves.

,b>New Wolves in the teams

Even Wolfsburg had been pretty active on transfer market during the summer, new players did not bring expected results in the opening rounds of Bundesliga. They had been hoping for UEFA Cup spot, and in one moment they had been in relegation zone. Therefore, board once again decided to enter transfer market and to try to bring new players that can help them to achieve the goal. Daniel Ljuboja is probably the most important new player. Since Wolfsburg’s biggest problem was scoring, it is expected that they will try to find solution for attack. Magath already told the press that he is satisifed with new signing and that Serbian international is the right man for the job. On the other hand, Magath decided to release goalkeeper Jentzch and to replace him with ex-keepr of Nacional, Diego Benaglio. In the midfield, Wolfsburg have added Japanese talent Makoto Hasebe and they expect a lot from the player who they rate as wonderkid.

Fot the match with Schalke, Magath will certainly try with more defensive approach and with more players in the midfield. That will leave Grafite as lonely striker, while Marcelinho as the best player of the team will strengthen midfield with Dejagah and Schafer, as well as with Josue and Genter who both will have defensive tasks. Wolfsburg was pretty bad during the Fall and they will try to beat Schalke to earn self confidence before the start of the bundesliga’a second half.

"Royal Blues" without Kevin Kurany

Schalke’s striker missed first two weeks of preseason with injury and came back to training schedulle this week. There are slight chances that Slomka will risk him in the DFB Pokal. Schalke players are in excellent mood. Once again, the Board used transfer window to strengthen the team. New players at Velentis Arena are Ze Roberto, Albert Streit and Levan Kenia, and with them it is obvious that Schalke will try to attack the Champions league spot once again. Champions league is the priority, but it is also hard to believe that Schalke will miss the chance to enter title race if Bayern or Werder slip.

In the contrary to Magath, Slomka will certainly start with more offensive approach and with Asamoah, Altintop and Lovenkrands in the attacking line. Behind the attackers, Schalke is expecting a lot from the first half surprise Croatian youngster Ivan Rakitic. Rakitic is still in the club even he had lot of offers from the biggest european clubs during the winter. Schalke is still playing in the Champions league as the only team from Germany that is still in the competition, but even with the tough schedulle in next couple of weeks it is hard to imagine that they will give away the Pokal battle without a proper fight. During the weekend Schalke is hosting current champions Stuttgart and this match is excellent preparation for that match.

Betting verdict

Diuring the Fall, we could see great match between rivals at Volkswagen Arena. Match ended with 1:1 draw, but both teams had lot of chances. Wolfsburg will once again try to beat Schalke defense on counters and with the talent they have in the midfield and on both flanks they will probably score. On the other hand, we doubt that Schalke will miss their chances and in that situation Over 2.5 goals looks like decent bet.

Our tip: Bet 4 on Over 2.5 goals
Odds 1.8 at
Bookmaker: Bet365