Mainz 05 v FC Augsburg Bundesliga Prediction and Preview

You might begin by asking why would you want to read about 2 sides you barely know, who sit 14th and 15th in the Bundesliga and are likely to play out an instantly forgettable match this afternoon and you'd be right to question that. However, the good news is you can get great odds on it being one of the worst games of football you've ever seen! So place your bets, sit back and enjoy a lovely Sunday afternoon nap while watching Mainz v Augsburg.

To me, this has the makings of one of those matches where both sides know that a draw would be a decent result all round. A quick look at the table shows exactly why with Augsburg and Mainz separated by a point and just 4 and 3 points respectively clear of Werder Bremen in the automatic relegation places. A point for both today + their superior goal difference would make them very difficult to catch with just 3 games of the season remaining.

It's tighter than a nun's %$£^ down there

As such, I'd imagine that coming into this match both teams will be looking to keep it tight at the start of the game as much as anything for fear of losing and plunging themselves deeper into a relegation battle. An early goal, of course, could change the complexion of this fixture but do either of these sides have it in them?

Their respective records over the last few weeks have been very similar. Mainz copped a bit of a hammering (0-5) at the hands of RB Leipzig 4 games ago but since then have shored things up and conceded just twice in their last 3 games while scoring 3 themselves. Augsburg meanwhile have scored just 5 goals in their 5 games back since the restart and 3 of those came against a Schalke side so poor that I'd fancy bagging at least a brace against them. Again, at the other end, their defence has been fairly solid conceding 5 in 5.

Neither side's cause upfront is helped by the goal droughts being experienced by their main attacking threats. Florian Niederlechner started the season off in fine form for Augsburg with a scoring ratio of better than a goal every other game prior to the New Year but since then he has endured 10 games without finding the back of the net. Similarly, Robin Quaison of Mainz had scored 12 times by February including 2 hattricks but has looked short of form since the return of football in May and has failed to score in 6 games.

All in all, this does not have the makings of a classic encounter but the bookies feel differently and this morning were offering odds of 2.10 on there being under 2.5goals which based on the above I thought I'd take a piece of! Equally the draw at an implied probability of 28% also looks very good value for money.

Prediction: Under 2.5 goals at odds of 2.10 or better

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Prediction: Draw at odds of 3.5 or better

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Bet here on betscorum

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