Schalke vs Union Berlin prediction: GERMANY: Bundesliga betting tips on match 2022-08-26 13:30.
Schalke’s miserable return to the Bundesliga continued with a 0-0 draw at Wolfsburg that, whilst admirable as a defensive effort, was still a missed opportunity. Schalke veteran Simon Terodde was made to rue a missed penalty kick on the stroke of half-time in that game, which leaves manager Frank Kramer without a league win in charge of his new club (D2, L1).
The hosts won the Bundesliga II (BL2) last season despite ending the season with only the fifth-best home record in the division, and after squandering a 40-minute lead to Gladbach in their first home outing of this new league campaign, Schalke have now dropped points in almost half of their 18 home league fixtures since the start of 2021/22 (W10, D6, L2). Having also lost each of their BL2 home games against the other top-four clubs from last season, this will be another stern test of how they fare against stronger opposition.
An impressive 2-1 win over Leipzig in the last round gave Union Berlin their finest ever start to a Bundesliga season (W2, D1), and secured their longest-ever unbeaten top-flight run in their history (W8, D2)! They start the round in a now familiar occupation in the top half of the table, and should travel here confident of recording their first-ever competitive win against Schalke at the sixth attempt (D3, L2).
Manager Urs Fischer praised the “compactness”, precision and hard work of his troops, as that Leipzig win saw Union lead at half-time and claim all three points at full-time for the second time this season. Their next challenge is how they handle the growing weight of expectation, especially after losing three of their five games as travelling favourites (W2, L3) last Bundesliga season.
Players to watch: Rodrigo Zalazar has scored in Schalke’s last two league home games, with Schalke on a six-game unbeaten run across all competitions (W5, D1) when he scores. Meanwhile, American striker Jordan Siebatcheu is in outstanding form, scoring Union’s first goal in three of his last four appearances in any competition.
Hot streak: Union have not lost any of the last 30 Bundesliga games in which they scored the opening goal (W22, D8).