The 2.Bundesliga season begins on Friday, with traditional giants Schalke and Hamburger battling it out for a solid start in the hopes of gaining promotion.
Schalke finished 18th in the Bundesliga, their lowest position in terms of both points and goals scored. The Royal Blues scored 25 goals last season, which is one of the lowest totals in Bundesliga history.
The Hamburger were demoted to the second division at the end of the 2017/18 season, and they appear to be a strong contender for promotion in each of the next three seasons.
They lost out on promotion by one point in both 2018/19 and 2019/20, and they finished fourth last season after dominating the top three until the final three games.
The Rothosen has had a lot of managerial changes in the past few campaigns, and this time they're starting with an inexperienced name in Tim Walter. Walter had previously failed to make an impression at Holstein Kiel and Stuttgart.
Both teams enjoyed a successful pre-season, with Schalke winning all five games they played. They went on to win 3-2 against Vitesse to round out their preparations before drawing 0-0 with Zenit Saint Petersburg and Shakhtar Donetsk.
HSV, on the other hand, had more success, winning three of the four friendlies, including morale-boosting 1-0 victories against Basel and Silkeborg before drawing 2-2 with Bundesliga side Augsburg.
In their last eight Bundesliga matches, the teams have shared three wins and a tie.
Schalke has gone undefeated in their last seven home games, winning four of them.
Over 2.5 goals have been scored in 8 of the last 12 head-to-head games at Gelsenkirchen. Meanwhile, both teams have scored in 10 of the last 13 games played at this venue.
Both clubs want to start the season off well after impressing in pre-season friendlies, so we can expect an end-to-end action-packed football contest on Friday.
Their head-to-head matches, as well as the majority of 2.Bundesliga games during the last two seasons, have a history of producing high-scoring contests. As a result, my first choice is the BTTS and Over 2.5 goals combination.
At the same time, Schalke has the home advantage and a strong head-to-head record versus HSV at this venue. Away victories are also uncommon in their head-to-head matches.
Prediction: We predict 2.5 Over in this match
Tip: 2.5 Over
