RB Leipzig vs Borussia Mönchengladbach prediction: No time to ease into the new season
The new Bundesliga season is only just beginning, but we are already being treated to a rather intriguing fixture. In the opening round, RB Leipzig will host Borussia Mönchengladbach at the Red Bull Arena. The match will take place on 29 August, kicking off at 15:30 Central European Time. For both teams, it is a great opportunity to make an immediate statement about their ambitions.
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Leipzig underwent plenty of changes during the summer. The biggest of them was the appointment of new manager Martín Demichelis, who will be tasked with bringing the team back into contention for the top places after a difficult previous season. The squad has also changed considerably. The club parted ways with Yan Diomande, who joined Real Madrid, Loïs Openda, who moved to Juventus, and goalkeeper Péter Gulácsi. However, an old acquaintance has returned to Saxony — Christopher Nkunku. The Frenchman joined on loan from AC Milan with an option to buy and could, of course, become one of the team's biggest assets.
Leipzig have already started their competitive campaign. In the German Cup, Demichelis' side comfortably dispatched Eintracht Trier 6-0. Brian Gruda, Willi Orbán, Conrad Harder, Antonio Nusa and Ezechiel Banzuzi all got on the scoresheet. So, there is certainly no shortage of confidence ahead of the start of the league season.
However, there are also some squad concerns. On 25 August, the club announced that Rômulo would miss the match due to a tendon problem, while Ørjan Nyland trained separately because of a foot injury. Maxime Estève, Assan Ouédraogo and Christoph Baumgartner are also not expected to be available for the game.
Borussia find themselves in a somewhat different situation. They finished only 12th last season with 38 points and spent a long period close to the danger zone. Eugen Polanski managed to stabilise the situation and has now been given a full pre-season and the opportunity to build the team around his own ideas.
The Foals underwent a major rebuild during the summer. The club signed as many as ten players, with the return of Japanese defender Ko Itakura among the most notable additions. At the same time, Borussia lost Rocco Reitz, who moved to Leipzig, as well as long-serving defender Nico Elvedi, who joined Leeds.
The visitors' main hope in attack is Tim Kleindienst. Due to a knee injury, he missed almost the entire previous season, while Borussia scored only 42 goals — their worst tally since returning to the Bundesliga in 2008. If the captain has genuinely returned to full fitness, it could significantly change the team's attacking potential. The Foals also signed Isac Lidberg in the summer after he scored 17 goals in the 2. Bundesliga last season.
Borussia also avoided any unwanted drama in the German Cup, thrashing Schott Mainz 5-0. Hugo Bolin scored twice, while Daiki Hashioka, Lukas Ullrich and young Wael Mohya also found the net.
As for the head-to-head record, the advantage is clearly on the hosts' side. The teams have met 20 times in the Bundesliga, with Leipzig winning 11 matches and Borussia claiming only four victories. Their most recent encounter also ended in a 1-0 win for the Saxony side.
So, we have a classic opening-day match: both teams are still finding their rhythm, but there is already plenty of interest in seeing how much their potential has changed. Leipzig look like favourites thanks to home advantage, a stronger squad and the positive momentum generated by their 6-0 cup win. But Borussia under Polanski clearly have no intention of being an easy opponent.
It will be particularly interesting to see how the visitors cope with Leipzig's fast-paced football and how the hosts deal with the returning Kleindienst. If Leipzig play with the same aggression they showed in the cup, the Foals could face some serious problems. But the opening round is always unpredictable, which is exactly why this fixture looks far more interesting than a typical match between a favourite and a mid-table side.
My prediction: Both Teams to Score — Yes.
