Union Berlin vs. VfL Bochum: A win for the home team

Union Berlin will host Bochum in the Bundesliga on Sunday 16th April 16 at the Stadion An der Alten Forsterei. Both clubs will be looking to avenge their defeats when Union Berlin hosts VfL Bochum in the Bundesliga on Sunday.

Union Berlin's outside championship chances were almost surely dashed by Borussia Dortmund last weekend, while Bochum was pulled back into the relegation struggle by Stuttgart.

With Union Berlin not losing at home this season and VfL Bochum winning only two of the fourteen away games played, a low-scoring win is expected for the home side. 

Union Berlin's hopes of winning the club's first major trophy have been dashed by defeats to Eintracht Frankfurt in the DFB-Pokal quarter-finals and Dortmund in the Bundesliga, but the home team can still secure a landmark achievement in the form of Champions League qualification this season. When Kevin Behrens equalized Donyell Malen's opener, Die Eisernen appeared to be heading home with a point, but Youssoufa Moukoko came off the bench to score a winner with 11 minutes remaining, keeping his side two points behind Bayern Munich at the top of the table.

The coach of the home side would feel his team has been unlucky. Hence the coach will be encouraging his players to keep their spirits up after exceeding expectations yet again despite their budget being dwarfed by the majority of the clubs surrounding them at the table. 

After losing out on Champions League qualifying by a single point last season, they will not want to see that happen again next month, with RB Leipzig and Freiburg hot on their tails on each side of the top four's dotted lines.

Union Berlin's possible starting lineup:

Goalkeeper: Ronnow; 

Defenders: Doekhi, Knoche, Leite; 

Midfielderes: Trimmel, Laidouni, Khedira, Haberer, Gieselmann; 

Strikers: Becker, Behrens

Bochum is only slightly above the relegation zone totally with their opponents closing up on them in the standings after the recent defeat at home to Stuttgart last weekend. The newly installed coach won his first five league games in charge at home after taking over for Thomas Reis in September, but three defeats in their last four matches at Vonovia-Ruhrstadion have contributed significantly to Die Unabsteigbaren failing to live up to their nickname by remaining firmly in the relegation zone.

Bochum will rue missing a golden opportunity to put significant distance between themselves and the bottom three by losing to Stuttgart, especially after leveling the proceedings through Kevin Stoger's dispatched penalty two minutes before the hour mark. Instead, Letsch's team appears to be in a significant struggle between now and the conclusion of the season, though after losing six of their first seven games of the season, that was always going to be the case despite Letsch's immensely beneficial influence over his first few months in command.

VfL Bochum's possible starting lineup:

Goalkeeper: Riemann; 

Defenders: Stafylidis, Ordets, Masovic, Soares; 

Midfielders: Stoger, Osterhage; Asano, Forster, Antwi-Adjei; 

Striker: Hofmann

Union Berlin has been undefeated at home this season and is considered the favorite. They've won 10 of their last twelve home games versus the visitors.

Meanwhile, Bochum has failed to score in three of their previous six road games against Union Berlin. The visitors' defensive woes have been a source of concern all season, with 12 goals conceded in their past five away games.

This season, Berlin has benefited greatly from home advantage. Given their good home record against Bochum, they should eke out a close victory without conceding. A home win with a potential score of 1-0 or 2-0 is to be expected. 

Below are the expert's bets to consider. 

• W1 for 1.645 odds (1xBet);
• No BTTS for 1.698 odds (Coinplay);
• Under 2.5 for 1.72 odds (Bet365);