Hanover – Magdeburg
2nd Bundesliga Round 10
Hannover, October 20, 18:30 CET
In the fight for the Top 3 position in the 2. Bundesliga, Hannover will have to take advantage of the opportunity and win against Magdeburg, a team from the middle of the table that is in a decline in form.
After losing away to Kaiserslautern 3:1 in the previous round, the Hannover team now has two points less than HSV in second place and four points less than leaders St. Pauli. However, what is important to point out is that behind this team is a series of difficult matches, and that overall they are a team that plays drastically better at their stadium.
For the first time since September 30 and the victory over Wehen 2:0, Hannover will play on their field. Previously, they played exceptionally well in a 7-0 win over Osnabruck on September 17. The only stumbling block was a 1:0 loss against HSV on August 26. It is also the only defeat of the home team in Hannover in the last eight matches, and it was against a rival that objectively has a better team. However, HSV has much better squad as a whole and key individuals, than Magdeburg.
On the other hand, Magdeburg lost the last two matches away from home, and in defeats against Nurnberg 1:0 on the first day of October and Schalke 4:3 on September 16, the team did not leave a good impression. It is clear that this is a club whose ultimate reach is the middle of the table, and that survival will not be threatened. Also, it is clear that Hanover has a much greater motive in the fight for victory in this duel.
The teams have played only two H2H duels in recent history - last year Magdeburg managed to win 2:1 in this difficult away game. However, Hannover is now a much better team and the favorite to win, and they could certainly score at least two goals in front of their fans.
Simply, the impression is that Magdeburg has big problems in defense in away matches in the 2. Bundesliga, they have already conceded eight goals in four matches since the start of the season away from home. It is about a team that is combative, but that does not perform with the mindset of defending or playing slower on the road against the favorites. Because of this, they often paid the price of routine defeats.
Hannover striker Teuchert is in excellent form, with seven goals he shares the top of the scorers list in the 2. Bundesliga. On the other hand, the most dangerous forward in the Magdeburg team is Luca Schuler. He scored four goals in the season, but has already gone four games without a goal. Overall, Schuler in recent weeks has fit into the bad image of the team, which is in a slump and is playing clearly worse than in August.
Hannover is not burdened with injuries to important players, so the German football public expects perhaps a completely routine triumph of the hosts. Last weekend in a friendly game Hannover easily won away to elite Bundesliga team Bochum 3:1. The home team will enter the game with a lot of confidence and look for a goal as soon as possible - in order to shift the pressure on their direct rivals in the fight for the Top 3 with a win.
Magdeburg is currently in the eighth position, and the impression is that the quality of the games this team provides is more in line with the lower half of the 2. Bundesliga table. After this match, there is a big chance that the visitors will be out of the Top 10 positions.