Borussia Monchengladbach v Hamburg – Sunday 12th July – Borussia-Park (15:00)
13/10 draw 13/10 37/10
Borussia Monchengladbach will face Hamburg at Borussia Park stadium in one of two semi-final matches in the 2015 Telekom Cup on Sunday which will be played for only 45 minutes. The winner of this tie will play in the final of the tournament on the same day at the same stadium where they will meet the winner of the other semi-final clash between Bayern Munich and Augsburg.
Borussia Monchengladbach
Borussia Monchengladbach achieved their best Bundesliga finish in terms of final position since 1987, as the Foals finished third behind Bayern Munich and Wolfsburg with automatic qualification to the Champions League secured for the first time since 1978. Gladbach’s successful season even included a historic unbeaten run from the start of the season until as late as November, eventually spanning 19 games until the club’s first defeat. The Foals succumbed to defeat just six times in the Bundesliga last season while wins against Bayern and resounding victories against Schalke and Borussia Dortmund respectively were just few highlights of a great season. Monchengladbach will be hoping for another successful campaign and winning the Telekom Cup will start their season on a high. The Foals have a good recent head-to-head record against Hamburg having lost just once in their last 10 matches where they’ve won four times including three from their last four meetings with The Red Shorts. Max Kruse who scored 11 goals in the league last term has just joined Wolfsburg but the Foals can still rely on their top striker Raffael Caetano to hit the back of the net. The Brazilian netted 12 goals last season and 
if he gets top supply from the talented Thorgan Hazard – who is Gladbach’s creative hub – Caetano can be expected to take his chances.
Hamburg
Hamburg’s 2014/15 campaign will be mostly remembered for their lack of goals and sluggish performances. The Red Shorts secured a lifeline to their long-standing top-flight status, many thanks to a nerve-racking second-leg extra-time win at Karlsruher SC in the relegation playoff. Hamburg lost 17 times last season and will be hoping for better things in the upcoming 2015/16 season. Victory over the Foals could give them some sort of confidence but it won’t be easy.
Prediction: Monchengladbach
Hamburg have a terrible defence and will struggle to prevent Gladbach’s attack from running havoc. The Red Shorts conceded 50 goals in the league last season and their defence hasn’t been strengthened as yet. Not even lesser time can help them keep a clean sheet and they don’t even have goals in them as they scored the least (25) in the Bundesliga last season. Get on the Foals and move on.
Bayern Munich v Augsburg – Sunday 12th July – Borussia-Park (16:15)
17/20 draw 19/10 42/10
The second semi-final of the Telekom Cup will be played between current champions Bayern Munich and Augsburg in what could be a thrilling encounter. Augsburg were one of the few teams to beat Pep Guardiola’s side last season by a 1-0 margin at the Allianz Arena in May.
Bayern Munich
The 2014/15 season saw Bayern Munich secure their third consecutive league title and a second one for Guardiola. Certainly they are too good for the Bundesliga, emphasised by breaking the record for the most points accumulated before the winter break, 45. The Bavarians recorded 25 wins from 34 matches with four draws and five defeats. Guardiola’s side netted a remarkable 80 goals with Robert Lewandowski, Arjen Robben and Thomas Muller all reaching double figures. Not only are Bayern lethal in offence but they are rock-solid in defence having conceded just 18 times last season. Despite losing to Augsburg in the league just two months ago, Bayern can argue with the fact that they were champions already and weren’t pushed hard enough by the other teams. The Bundesliga champions still have a very good record against Augsburg with eight wins from their last 10 encounters.
Augsburg
Augsburg capped a fairy-tale campaign by securing automatic qualification for Europe for the first time in their history in 2014/15. Augsburg won 15 of their 34 matches played with 15 defeats and four draws, which is actually quite good for a side of their standards. Augsburg have a number of players that could hurt Bayern on Sunday, yet none are quite as talented as left-back Baba Rahman who is reportedly attracting interest from Chelsea. Rahman offers pace and technique down the left flank and will look to create goal-scoring chances for Augsburg’s 10-goal top scorer of last season, Raul Bobadilla. The Argentine is a proven net-rattler who has already beaten Manuel Neuer before and Bayern will need to mark him tightly.
Prediction: Bayern Munich
The Bundesliga champions have an abundance of world-class players with the likes of Robben, Ribery and Lewandowski leading a lethal team that is superior to Augsburg in all departments. Back Bayern all the way.
Chadley Nagel
