Bundesliga Matchday 26 betting preview: Tread lightly following hiatus

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The Bundesliga is unquestionably the world's most popular league to resume so far amid the coronavirus pandemic.

If you're anything like me, you're giddy with anticipation. But while it might be tempting to dive in headfirst and bet the farm on a full slate of matches this weekend, my biggest piece of advice is to tread lightly.

The bigger leagues will be impacted most by the stoppage, as their players are used to regimented training schedules and stadiums packed with 50,000 supporters. The lack of home-pitch advantage will be felt with no fans in the stands, and the athletes will require more time to get back in proper game shape.

After more than two months, this will essentially feel like the first match of the preseason for a lot of players - and there aren't even two months off between seasons sometimes.

Of course, these are merely my expectations rather than facts. The truth is we don't know exactly how these players and matches will be impacted, and that's why it's important to avoid getting carried away on the first weekend back.

Wolfsburg (+110) at Augsburg (+240), Draw (+250)

I'm confident in saying that attacking play will be impacted most by the hiatus - forwards will be just off the pace, needing a game or two to rediscover their form - which is why I'll be playing under 2.5 and under 3 goals in Saturday's Revierderby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke. But I'm going against that notion here.

Even if attackers aren't their sharpest, both of these sides love to attack and are prone to sloppy errors in defense. Augsburg have scored 21 goals in their last nine home games while keeping just two clean sheets in their last 14. Wolfsburg have allowed at least two goals in each of their last five away matches while keeping just one clean sheet in their last nine. They've also scored 14 goals in their last seven road fixtures against clubs in the bottom half of the table, which Augsburg are.

Finally, the last two meetings between these clubs at WWK Arena produced eight total goals, and I think they'll get to three with ease on Saturday.

Pick: Over 2.5 (-110)

Paderborn (+225) at Fortuna Dusseldorf (+110), Draw (+260)

Relegation looms for both of these clubs if they fail to put together a strong end to the campaign, giving this match the feel of a true six-pointer. Despite what their standing suggests, Paderborn have put together some really impressive displays this season and have actually been better away from home, where they've lost just three of their last seven matches - one of those being a last-second defeat at Bayern after twice coming from behind.

Fortuna, meanwhile, have recorded just one win in seven home matches this season. They might be the worst squad in the top flight based on talent alone, and I think they're in real trouble down the stretch. Paderborn won the reverse fixture 2-0 and a similar result here wouldn't shock me.

Pick: Paderborn 0.0, +0.5 (+102)

Mainz (+300) at Koln (-118), Draw (+275)

Mainz were on something of a scoring spree before the interruption, but their momentum will be halted as a result of the hiatus. They'd scored just four goals in six away matches before that run, and you can expect their attack to sputter against a very stingy Koln defense.

Excluding their date with Bayern, Koln have allowed just one goal in their last five home matches, impressively keeping clean sheets against Schalke, Freiburg, Werder Bremen, and Bayer Leverkusen. They're a well-disciplined and organized side, but goals can also elude them at times, as they've scored just one or fewer in seven of their 12 home contests this season.

The last five meetings between Koln and Mainz at RheinEnergieStadion produced just six total goals, and following the two-month break, I expect another tightly contested match with scoring hard to come by.

Pick: Under 2.5, 3 (+108)

Alex Moretto is a sports betting writer for theScore. A journalism graduate from Guelph-Humber University, he has worked in sports media for over a decade. He will bet on anything from the Super Bowl to amateur soccer, is too impatient for futures, and will never trust a kicker. Find him on Twitter @alexjmoretto.