Bundesliga 25th matchday, Saturday, 08.03.2025 at 15:30
After the surprisingly clear 3-0 victory in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 at home against Leverkusen on Wednesday, FC Bayern are now back to the daily routine in the Bundesliga.
The central question of how well the record champions can manage this balancing act is of course also the subject of my Bayern Bochum betting tip. Unsurprisingly, the bookmakers’ odds are very clear.
After all, VfL are currently the weakest away team in the German top flight. In addition, the first success in the seventh clash against Bayer under coach Xabi Alonso should give the record champions a further boost.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany will not necessarily have to make a complete substitution for the game against Bochum ahead of the second leg at the BayArena next Tuesday – although the coach could certainly afford to.
Ten matchdays before the end of the season, Munich already have an eight-point lead over first and only rivals Leverkusen in the league table. Such a cushion has never been squandered at this stage.
I’m also backing the record champions on Saturday and am playing my Bayern Bochum prediction with odds of 1.80 at NEO.bet with the tip “Victory Bayern & Under 4.5 goals”.
The betting odds
The Bayern vs Bochum betting odds provide us with no surprises. The league leaders, who are playing at home, are the heavy favorites. The odds for a home win climb to just 1.14.
On the other hand, the best bookies, which include some bookmakers without tax, are offering high Bayern vs Bochum odds of between 15.0 and 22.0 for a win for the visitors from the Ruhr region.
AI prediction Bayern vs Bochum: This is what ChatGPT
As always, we asked ChatGPT for an assessment for our Bayern Bochum prediction. This time, however, I don’t agree with the AI’s suggestions. I can best live with the tip with a low risk.
Here we get the Bayern Bochum bet “Both teams score – No” suggested, for which we get odds of 1.69 in the Merkur Bets app. And VfL travel to the Allianz Arena with just 23 goals in 24 league games. Only Union Berlin (20) and St. Pauli (18) are less likely to score.
On the other side of the pitch, ChatGPT expects a few goals in the other two picks. And if you look at the last duels between the two clubs, that certainly makes sense.
However, I expect the record champions to make some changes. Attacking players like Kane, Oliseh, Coman or Musiala could get a break. With such a big lead in the table, FCB don’t have to go full throttle. This is also important to consider in the Bayern Bochum betting tip.
So I wouldn’t play the medium-risk AI tip “Over 4.5 goals”, for which you get odds of 2.55 after registering with ODDSET. I am even more cautious with the high-risk tip.
Here, the artificial intelligence calculates with “Over 4.5 goals for Bayern”. That would also give Betano odds of 3.75 and would certainly be interesting for new customers of the bookie, who can still secure the Betano betting bonus.
However, I believe that coach Vincent Kompany’s men will save some energy ahead of the second leg against Leverkusen and will be happy to settle for a narrow victory.
Analysis: Bayern vs Bochum
In the Bundesliga, Bayern had shown impressive consistency of results under Vincent Kompany with 61 out of a possible 72 points so far. However, the record champions have had far more problems internationally.
In the CL league phase, they suffered away defeats at Aston Villa, Barcelona and Feyenoord. In addition, Munich had to tremble for quite a long time at home against Celtic in the second leg of the knockout play-off round.
All the more surprising was the clear 3:0 victory on Wednesday in the first leg of the round of 16 of the premier class against new arch-rivals Bayer 04. FCB now not only have a very good starting position for the second leg on Tuesday.
The Reds have also put down an exclamation marker in the battle for supremacy in Germany and a place in the Champions League final, which will take place in the Allianz Arena this year.
The record champions are playing their best season in the Bundesliga for nine years. Only three times in its first division history has the club had more points to its name at this stage.
Munich are a force at home in particular. They have won all of their last ten competitive home games. The team has always scored at least three goals. They also have the best offense in the league with 72 goals.
They also have the best xG value (60.5), the best defense (20 goals conceded), the fewest shots allowed (147) and the best expected goals-against value (16.6). Bayern are also the best home team (11S, 1U, 41:9 goals).
FCB is also ranked first in terms of shooting accuracy (57.7%), while it is “only” second in terms of shot conversion (21.3%). Also, no other first division team has scored more joker goals (13).
Rating Analysis
This duel between the two friendly clubs naturally provides us with more Bayern Bochum tips. Bayern goalscorer Harry Kane, for example, takes center stage. The Englishman has scored 44 points in 34 competitive matches in 2024/25.
Before the CL match against Leverkusen, however, Kane had only scored five times from play since the turn of the year. Most recently, the attacker had gone four competitive games without scoring a goal of his own.
This streak came to an end on Wednesday in the Premier League. Will the knot now also burst in the Bundesliga? Bookmaker NEO.bet believes a goal from the England international on Saturday is quite likely and is therefore only rewarding it with odds of 1.50.
New and existing customers of the provider can optimize their stake/reward ratio by redeeming the current NEO. bet promotion code before placing their Bayern Bochum bet. bet promotion code before their bet.
Bayern vs Bochum: Hope is alive at VfL
When Dieter Hecking took over Bochum in November, the club was bottom of the table. Now, after 24 match days, the club is at least in 16th place in the relegation places.
They are four points away from the safety zone. They also have a two-point cushion on the red lantern. Nevertheless, the 0:1 home defeat against Hoffenheim on the last matchday was a bitter pill to swallow.
But VfL’s focus is right. The club was also awarded two points from the game at Union Berlin on December 14 following the ruling of the sports court. But there is still a long way to go before the club is rescued.
Especially as tough opponents such as Munich, Frankfurt, Leverkusen and Stuttgart await in the coming weeks.
Construction sites on both sides of the pitch remain
With 17 points after 24 match days, the club is still playing its historically weakest season in the top flight. VfL have picked up 12 of their 17 points at home in the Ruhrstadion. A total of just five points were gained away from home.
However, after the two draws in Kiel and Wolfsburg, the team is unbeaten in two away games for the first time since November 2023. Bochum have the highest expected goals against average in the league (48.2).
With an xG value of 30.3, coach Hecking’s team only scored 22 goals. No first division team undercuts its expected goals by such a wide margin (-8.3). The Blue & Whites are also only 16th in shot conversion (10.2%).
Only Holstein Kiel (2) have scored less often than the Ruhr club (3).
Of course, I also look at the direct comparison in my Bayern Bochum prediction. In 82 games against FC Bayern, Bochum have only managed to leave the pitch as winners eleven times (16U, 55N).
Ten of these victories were achieved at Castroper Straße. VfL have won just one of 38 visits to Munich (8U, 29N). This historic victory dates back to August 1991.
The first leg of the current season was also a clear 5-0 win for the record champions at the Ruhrstadion. Three of FCB’s last five victories against Bochum ended with a 7-0 scoreline after 90 minutes.
However, Munich lost their respective visits to the Ruhr club in the 2022/23 and 2023/24 seasons: A 2:4 in February 2022 was followed by a 2:3 in February 2024.
My Bayern Bochum tip:
Actually, Bayern can take it easy on Saturday. The situation in the BL table is completely relaxed. What’s more, their opponents from Bochum don’t exactly inspire fear and terror away from home.
Coach Kompany can therefore confidently give a few regular players a break before the second leg against Leverkusen. In the end, however, I still expect Munich to win. For the reasons mentioned, however, it could be a close one.
So in my Bayern Bochum prediction, I opt for the tip: Victory Bayern & Under 4.5 goals!
